An Alberta judge has temporarily frozen up to $8.5 million in assets belonging to prominent separatist lawyer Jeffrey Rath and his professional corporation amid an escalating legal dispute involving trust funds from a First Nation treaty settlement.
On July 10, an Alberta Court of King’s Bench justice granted an interim Mareva order against Rath and Jeffrey R.W. Rath Professional Corporation, operating as Rath & Company. According to court documents, the judge found reasonable grounds to believe assets could be moved or dissipated before a judgment is reached in the legal battle with Tallcree First Nation.
A Mareva order, commonly known as a freezing order, is a pre-judgment measure designed to prevent assets from being transferred, concealed or liquidated before a court case is resolved.
The order freezes eligible property valued at up to $8,518,075, including bank and investment accounts, vehicles, real estate, personal property and shares. It also restricts the use of secured credit where repayment is backed by property in which Rath or his corporation has an interest.
The interim order is scheduled to remain in effect until July 15, when a further court hearing is expected.
Rath is a co-founder of the Alberta Prosperity Project and a prominent advocate for Alberta separatism. He has also represented First Nations in major treaty settlement cases.
The dispute with Tallcree First Nation stems from a legal fee battle that has since expanded into a fight over trust funds connected to a Treaty 8 settlement. The allegations contained in Tallcree’s court filings have not been proven in court, and Rath has not yet filed a response to the claims.
In 2021, an Alberta court reduced a 20-per-cent fee charged by Rath & Company in connection with Tallcree’s $57.6-million Treaty 8 settlement and ordered approximately $8.5 million to be returned to the First Nation Trust.
According to an affidavit filed by Tallcree Chief Rupert Meneen, the trust distributed settlement funds to beneficiaries while holding shares belonging to minors until they reached adulthood. Rath’s firm served as the trust’s sole trustee.
New court filings allege Rath withheld the trust’s financial statements and that Tallcree leadership later discovered his firm had charged more than $6 million in 2024 — the same fiscal year in which the court-ordered repayment was required.
Tallcree’s lawyers allege the trust may have effectively funded a significant portion of its own repayment.
Court documents state the 2024 charges included approximately $4.6 million in retroactive trust administrative costs and $1.4 million in professional fees. The following year, the trust was allegedly charged another $420,000 in similar fees.
Meneen’s lawyers argue the timing of the payments raises concerns that the trust was effectively repaid using its own funds. Again, the allegations have not been tested or proven in court.
Tallcree also alleges it does not know the current location of certain trust funds. Court documents state the First Nation initially believed the money was held in an RBC account before learning it had been moved.
On June 26, a judge ordered Rath’s professional corporation temporarily removed as trustee and replaced by BMO Trust Company. The firm was also ordered to provide information and records within specified deadlines, with a $2,500 daily penalty for failing to comply.
According to Tallcree’s application, BMO Trust Company is expected to charge approximately $44,700 annually before tax to administer the trust.
Rath declined to answer specific questions about the freezing order, citing the ongoing court proceedings.
He is required to submit responding evidence by July 14, ahead of the scheduled July 15 hearing.
