Arguments close in Métis National Council's 9-week trial against former leaders

One side says it's a case of self-dealing betrayal. The other calls it vindictive political revenge.

Those were the competing cases presented to an Ontario judge this week in Toronto, as oral arguments concluded in a nine-week civil trial launched by the Métis National Council (MNC) against former leaders, consultants and the Manitoba Métis Federation (MMF).

After more than two months, court has heard from the Métis Nation's most senior and credentialed leaders, who provided a granular look at some 20 years of MNC political, administrative and financial history.

"Fundamentally, this is a case of betrayal," said MNC lawyer Robert Cohen, of Toronto-based law firm Cassels, in closing arguments before Superior Court Justice Loretta Merritt on Tuesday.

At issue are a series of transactions that occurred in 2021 under the leadership of MNC president Clément Chartier and MMF President David Chartrand, shortly before the MMF broke from MNC during a citizenship dispute with the Métis Nation of Ontario.

Cohen alleged that, during "a political civil war" with Ontario and with Chartrand "mired in a conflict of interest," the leaders conspired to transfer key assets from MNC to MMF, including more than $8 million earmarked for Métis veterans and a culturally important history database, while giving lucrative payouts to loyal employees.

"The defendants opportunistically and secretly entered into unauthorized and self-dealing transactions, in breach of their duties and in breach of MNC's bylaws," Cohen said.

MNC seeks $15 million in damages, $1 million in punitive damages and return of the transferred assets. Chartrand and Chartier have both filed counterclaims.

MMF's lawyer rebuffed such talk on Wednesday, decrying the plaintiff's case as unproven and plagued by a fatal lack of evidence. After months of testimony and production of thousands of financial records, MNC ended the trial with the same evidence of wrongdoing it began with — none — said Rahool Agarwal, of Lax O'Sullivan Lisus Gottlieb in Toronto.

"There is no evidence at all of any financial misfeasance, yet the claim and the allegations persist," he told the judge.

He said despite the dearth of evidence, MNC pushed ahead with a divisive, public and costly trial, certain to cost all parties millions of dollars, only to fall short. He called the lawsuit an attempt "to exact political revenge."

"What this trial has shown definitively is that the allegations made by the plaintiff have no air of reality," he said.

Bologna sandwiches and tea

The testimony was frequently exhaustive and heated.

Chartrand alone spent about two weeks on the stand, where he depicted the struggle with the Métis Nation of Ontario as an existential battle over Métis national identity. He testified repeatedly that he only ever acted in the best interest of the nation.

"I wouldn't change anything I've done. I believe I worked as hard as I could to secure the future of the Métis Nation," Chartrand testified.

"The MNO situation caused massive disruption."

He was aggressively cross-examined, however, leading to several heated exchanges with the plaintiff's counsel. Chartier's testimony had a similar tone.

Chartier began by describing his youth, which included attending residential school in Île-à-la-Crosse, Sask. He recalled being known by his number, 46, and being whipped by nuns. 

But Chartier went on to become a lawyer and a Métis Nation leader, court heard, with Chartrand telling how Chartier ate and slept in his van, getting paid in bologna sandwiches and tea while helping pro bono with MMF's legal battle for harvesting rights.

Chartier consistently rejected all the plaintiff's suggestions of wrongdoing.

"I'm glad I did what I did, and I would do it again," he testified in cross-examination.

At one point he even seemed to ridicule the allegations, telling Cohen, "With the ridiculous claim against us it's kind of hard to keep a straight face."

Former MNC president grilled on evidence

Former MNC president Cassidy Caron, who filed the case in 2022, was also cross-examined vigorously.

She was grilled about the statement of claim's allegation that the defendants put $20.6 million from the Métis veterans fund into an investment account under the sole control of the MMF.

It turned out early on in the litigation that this was false. In fact Chartier and Chartrand left the $20.6 million with the national council gathering interest in a fund managed by Richardson Wealth. 

Defence counsel argued she knew this was wrong, and never bothered to correct the record despite knowing the reputational damage the lawsuit has done. She described the error as an oversight, a mistake based on a misunderstanding.

Defence counsel pressed her to admit that MNC filed the claim without any evidence to back up some key allegations. Court was shown transcripts from her examination for discovery in 2023, where she could not or would not answer when asked what evidence she had for certain claims against Chartier.

"I could not recall" the evidence MNC had then for those claims, she said at trial.

Agarwal said Caron's "lack of experience" came through loud and clear. He said the manner in which MNC advanced the trial "made this litigation intensely personal."

Cohen sought to present examples of "dishonest, disloyal conduct" and "favouritism" in which the Chartier administration favoured MMF.

Finally on Thursday afternoon, lawyers for former MNC officials, including former executive director Wenda Watteyne and about a half dozen consultants, concluded by branding the case a vindictive attempt to punish political enemies.

Court will resume in June to deal with a few remaining issues.