Healing one heart, one mind, & one spirit at a time!

Proposed Settlement

There is a proposed settlement for Day Scholar Survivors and their children (Descendants). Find out what it means for you.
Learn more

List of Schools

The proposed settlement includes all Residential Schools that might have had Day Scholars.

Learn More

Provide Feedback to the Court

Class Members have the right to tell the court what they think about the proposed settlement.
Learn More

Band Class Information

The proposed settlement does not affect the Band Class. The Band Class claims will continue to trial. Learn more.

Band Class

Proposed Settlement

Canada and the representative plaintiffs have signed an agreement to settle the Survivor and Descendant Class claims in the Day Scholars Class Action (Gottfriedson v. Canada). The Band Class claims in the Class Action are continuing to trial.

This is only a proposed settlement. Class Members cannot submit claims and cannot receive compensation unless and until the proposed settlement is approved by the Federal Court. The approval hearing is set to begin on September 7, 2021, and the judge’s decision will happen after the hearing concludes.

Who is the Proposed Settlement For?

Survivor Class Members attended a Residential School as a student during the day but did not sleep there overnight. To be eligible, you must have attended one of the schools on the “Schedule E” lists of Residential Schools that could have had Day Scholars.

For eligible Survivor Class Members who were alive as of May 30, 2005, but have died since then, a claim may be made on behalf of the estate.

Descendant Class Members are the children, by birth or adoption, of Survivor Class Members.

If you are a member of the Day Scholar Survivor Class or Descendant Class, it’s very important to learn as much as you can about the proposed settlement because it does impact your rights.

Quick Facts

Here are a few important things to know about the proposed settlement agreement:

Eligible Survivor Class Members will receive a $10,000 Day Scholar Compensation Payment. All approved claimants will receive this payment in full, without any deductions.

$50 million will be used to create the Day Scholars Revitalization Fund, which will support healing, wellness, education, language, culture, heritage, and commemoration activities for the benefit of Survivor and Descendant Class Members.

This agreement “releases” Canada of its liability from all Survivor and Descendant Class Members’ claims. That means these Class Members will not have the right to sue Canada for harms relating to their attendance (or parent’s attendance) at a Residential School as a Day Scholar in the future.

This is settlement is for…

  • Loss of language and culture, and psychological harms that Survivors and Descendants endured as a result of Day Scholars’ experiences in Residential Schools.
  • Visit the School Lists page to see all the Residential Schools that had or could have had Day Scholars.

This settlement is NOT for…

  • The sexual or serious physical abuse endured by students at Residential Schools.  These claims were included in the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement through the Independent Assessment Process. Day Scholars were eligible to make claims as part of this process.
  • Band Class members. The Band Class claims will continue to trial.
  • The harms experienced by those who attended Federal Indian Day Schools, which are different than Indian Residential Schools. There is a separate settlement agreement in place for Day School Survivors. You can learn more about that settlement at: IndianDaySchools.com

What Happens Next?

The next step in this process is a settlement approval hearing, which will start on September 7, 2021. A Federal Court judge will decide whether to approve the proposed settlement. The test that the judge will apply is whether the proposed settlement is fair, reasonable, and in the best interests of the Class Members. The judge will consider the entire settlement agreement all together as a complete package and will decide whether to approve it as a whole.

What Should I Do Now?

If you are a member of the Day Scholar Survivor Class or Descendant Class, it’s very important to learn as much as you can about the proposed partial settlement agreement because it does impact your rights. Read the following important documents and FAQs that explain the key things that you need to know about the proposed settlement agreement. Right now, you don’t have to do anything else.

You have the right to participate in the settlement approval process by telling the court what you think about the settlement agreement. This will help the judge to decide whether the settlement is fair, reasonable and in the best interests of the class.

Short-form notice:

A three-page summary that explains what is in the proposed settlement agreement and what is happening next.

Long-form notice:

A more in-depth summary that answers a number of questions you may have about the proposed settlement agreement.

Day Scholars Survivor and Descendant Class Settlement Agreement:

The actual legal document that sets out the complete proposed agreement.

Provide Feedback to the Court

Contact us