AFN says claims for First Nations child welfare class action settlement to open in March
Federal Court approved $23B settlement to compensate estimated 300,000 First Nations children, families
First Nations children and their families who lived under Canada's First Nations child welfare system between 1991 and 2022 will be able to apply for compensation under a class-action settlement starting next month.
Assembly of First Nations National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak said the settlement is an acknowledgement of the harms First Nations people experienced under a "racist system that has broken so many lives and families."
"After years of fighting for the recognition of harms done through Canada's discrimination, we are now less than a month away from the point where eligible claimants for the removed child and removed child and family classes can submit their application forms," she said.
"I know that no amount of money can give them back their childhood, but at least it's a signal to them that they have been wronged and that they can start the healing process."
In 2023, the Federal Court approved a $23 billion settlement to compensate an estimated 300,000 First Nations children and their families for Canada's chronic under-funding of on-reserve child welfare services.
The settlement agreement followed a 2019 Canadian Human Rights Tribunal (CHRT) ruling that ordered Ottawa to pay the maximum penalty for discrimination — $40,000 — to each child inappropriately removed from their homes, as well as their parents or grandparents.
Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs Grand Chief Kyra Wilson told a media availability in Winnipeg the claims process will be trauma-informed and claimants will not need to relive their experiences, as was the case with other First Nations-led class actions.
"Being in the child welfare system — a broken system — is devastating for our children and our families," Wilson said.
The agreement will recognize nine distinct groups of claimants, and will open to the first two groups on March 10. Individuals who were removed from their families on reserves or in Yukon between April 1, 1991 and March 31, 2022, can apply then, as can parents or grandparents of those individuals. Foster parents are not entitled to compensation.
Each claim is expected to take around six to 12 months to process.
Seven more groups are still waiting for approval to move forward. They include the Jordan's Principle group, which covers kids who experienced harms due to delays, denials or service gaps for essential services from Canada between Dec. 12, 2007 and Nov. 2, 2017.
A website with relevant information for claimants, fnchildclaims.ca, launched Monday morning.
Liaisons to be available to help with process
David Sterns, class counsel and partner at Sotos LLP, said individuals should start getting ready for the claims period by ensuring they have government-issued ID, a mailing address and bank account.
Regional liaisons will be available across the country to assist First Nations and relevant organizations with the process, along with a contact centre that people can call if they have questions. There will also be service coordinators who can provide referrals to mental health services should they be needed during the claims process.
Claimants do not need independent legal representation to apply, and the Assembly of First Nations is warning people to be wary of individuals who may be trying to take advantage of them.
A public campaign will also roll out in the coming weeks to ensure class members are aware of their eligibility — something that could be difficult for children still in the system and other vulnerable people.
The settlement also includes a CHRT-ordered reform of the child welfare system — a process that has been turbulent since a $47.8 billion reform package was proposed by Canada to chiefs last year.
Chiefs voted down that 10-year deal, saying it didn't go far enough and they wanted to head back to the negotiation table.
Canada informed the Assembly of First Nations last month it was not permitted to renegotiate reforms on a national level after chiefs voted the July deal down, despite calls from chiefs at two assemblies for Canada to do just that.
