It is still unknown if Mary Duckworth will again be the Chief of the Caldwell First Nation in Leamington, but a judge has put aside the decision to remove her from the position.
Judge Ann Marie McDonald ruled Duckworth, who was removed last September as chief, will be awarded $3,000 for court costs. She also ruled the Band Council's decision to remove her must be set aside and "referred back to council for redetermination by providing Ms. Duckworth with the appropriate procedural fairness rights."
Duckworth was twice elected band chief and twice removed.
She was first fired in November 2018 for alleged "malfeasance," a charge she denied. The accusation resulted from an investigation Duckworth's lawyer called little more than "a witch hunt."
Duckworth ran for re-election in January 2020 and won 77 per cent of the votes cast by members of the First Nation. However, a month later, Duckworth went on sick leave. In March 2020, her doctor extended her convalescence another six months.
Her lawyer, Kathryn Marshall, also told a hearing earlier this month Duckworth was unhappy council cut annual her pay from $95,000 to $65,000.
The Caldwell First Nation band office in Leamington. (Screen shot from Google.com/maps)
On September 8, the council received notice that Duckworth was cleared by her doctor to return to work immediately. The next day, council members met to discuss her removal.
At the heart of the lawsuit is whether Duckworth's removal was done in bad faith, whether she had sufficient notice of the meeting and denied the opportunity to address councillors. She found out about the decision a week later.
Judge McDonald ruled council did not follow a procedurally fair process when it made its decision.
"The process undertaken by the Caldwell First Nation Council was not procedurally fair to Ms. Duckworth, [and] any decision arising from that process is also unreasonable."
Duckworth asked to be reinstated, but several times in her decision, the judge pointed to the "contentious" relationship between Duckworth and council members.
She also asked for an award of $20,000, but Judge McDonald awarded the lesser amount because "Ms. Duckworth's own conduct has contributed to the circumstances that unfolded."
