- Parties: The applicant was Eddy Tallman. The respondent was the Whitefish Lake First Nation #459. 

- Subject Matter: The applicant, a member of the Whitefish Lake First Nation #459, filed a judicial review application requesting a remedy in the nature of mandamus to compel the Whitefish housing director to issue him a residency letter in accordance with the Whitefish Election Regulations. The applicant also sought an order directing Whitefish to hold a new election for the chief’s position. The issue in this proceeding was the impact of repeated refusals to issue a residency letter to the applicant. These refusals prevented him from running for the position of chief in the Whitefish election held on Apr. 12, 2022. 

- Ruling: The court ruled in the applicant’s favour and granted him the relief that he requested. Specifically, the court quashed the Feb. 28, 2023 reconsideration decision of the housing director, who was directed to issue a residency letter to the applicant. Under the Election Regulations, the court directed the holding and organization of a new election for the remainder of the chief’s term. The court found the reconsideration decision unreasonable and found a breach of the applicant’s procedural fairness rights. 

- Date: The hearing was set on Oct. 11, 2023. The court released its decision on Oct. 24, 2023. 

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

- Amount: The court ordered the respondent to pay the applicant costs of $15,000, inclusive of disbursements and taxes.