- Parties: The applicant was Spence Coutlee. The respondents were the Lower Nicola Indian Band and Lower Nicola Indian Band Electoral Officer.

- Subject Matter: On Sept. 28, 2022, the Chief and Council of the Lower Nicola Indian Band (LNIB) issued a decision removing the applicant from the Office of Councillor effective immediately under s. 4.12 of the the Chief and Council Policy, deeming him ineligible to run for Chief under s. 4.11 of the Policy, and barring him from running in the Oct. 22, 2022 election. The removal decision determined that the applicant engaged in a conflict of interest, breached his fiduciary duties, and violated the Policy, the Oath of Office, and the Lower Nicola Indian Band Financial Administration Law, 2020. The applicant sought judicial review. Federal Court file T-2153-22 addressed the removal decision, while Federal Court file T-2421-22 challenged the election itself.

- Ruling: The court ruled in the respondent’s favour and dismissed the judicial review application concerning the applicant’s challenge to the election. The court held that challenging the election was premature because the applicant failed to pursue the adequate alternative remedy that he had and failed to make any efforts to exhaust the appeal procedure in the Custom Election Rules.

- Date: The hearing was set on June 28, 2023. The court released its decision on Jan. 11, 2024.

- Venue: This was a federal case before the Federal Court.

- Amount: The court granted the applicant costs in the all-inclusive sum of $9,744.