The applicant, a member of the Acho Dene Koe First Nation, sought judicial review of the band council's decision to postpone its election and extend its term of office, and challenged the validity of section 4 of the federal First Nations Election Cancellation and Postponement Regulations (Prevention of Diseases).
The Federal Court held that the band council did not have the customary power to extend its own term.
The Court further declared that section 4 of the Regulations was ultra vires the regulation-making power in section 73(1)(f) of the Indian Act, finding that the power to regulate disease prevention on reserves did not extend to regulating the basic parameters of democratic governance such as the length of elected officials' terms.
The declaration of invalidity was suspended for 60 days.
