Quebec court approves $10.5M settlement for victims of sexual abuse by former hockey coach
François Lamarre faced charges from his time as coach in Greenfield Park
The Quebec Superior Court has approved a class-action settlement that will provide up to $10.5 million in compensation for individuals sexually abused by François Lamarre, a former minor hockey coach in Greenfield Park who died in 2020.
The settlement, approved Tuesday, will benefit victims of Lamarre, who was arrested in December 2019 and charged with gross indecency, indecent exposure, sexual assault, sexual touching and invitation to sexual touching.
The initial allegations involved four boys between the ages of nine and 16, alleged to have been sexually abused over a 25-year period, from 1972 to 1997.
More potential victims began coming forward after Lamarre's arrest. He pleaded not guilty, but none of the allegations were proven in court as the accused died of natural causes in the summer of 2020 at the age of 71.
The City of Longueuil was the primary municipal defendant in the class action, John Cormier v. François Lamarre.
Various community organizations that were connected to Lamarre's coaching activities, such as the Club Optimiste de Greenfield Park, Club Lions de Greenfield Park, were also named in the lawsuit.
Lamarre, who was a Montreal police officer, carried on the abuse until Dec. 31, 2001, according to the law firm representing the victims.
In a statement, the firm Kugler Kandestin L.L.P., says the settlement "offers members a high level of individual compensation, in the upper range of out-of-court settlements in similar matters."
The settlement ensures a simple and efficient adjudication process, says the statement, which emphasizes the confidential nature of the claims process. The firm urges potential claimants to submit their claims promptly.
Among the former coach's victims was Wade Wilson, a Longueuil city councillor, who, after learning of Lamarre's death, told CBC News he was disappointed the former coach wouldn't face the justice system.
"We would have liked to see him pay for the crime," said Wilson at the time.