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 | Anglican Church of Canada: Various Anglican dioceses administered 26 residential schools from 1920 to 1969. 1 Each Anglican diocese "is separately incorporated and is not legally responsible for the obligations of any other diocese." 2 Thus, the individual diocese is solely responsible for any abuse at schools that it operated. |
| Presbyterian Church in Canada: From a legal standpoint, the schools were run by offices which were part of the national church body. |
| Roman Catholic Church: The Roman Catholic Church does not exist as a legal entity; only its dioceses do. Again, each diocese is liable for abuse at its schools. However, most of the residential schools were operated by the Oblates and similar church orders. The latter were separately incorporated, and would be responsible for any liabilities at their schools. |
| United Church of Canada: The schools were mainly operated by the Board of Home Missions and the Women's Missionary Society. These are integral parts of a single incorporated legal entity, The United Church of Canada, which is legally liable for abuse at its schools. |
Thus, in theory, individual Anglican and Catholic dioceses, and individual Catholic orders are in the most exposed financial situation. Even a small number of abuse claims could force each of them in to bankruptcy, unless the government steps in with funding.
However, in practice, the federal government has been naming The General Synod of the Anglican Church by third party action. As of 2001-MAR, this has happened in 386 cases. Similarly, the government has been involving Roman Catholic dioceses in abuse trials, even though residential schools in their area were operated by separately incorporated Orders within the church.
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Lawsuits:
Both the government and the above mentioned religious institutions have been hit by class-action lawsuits totaling over a billion dollars (CDN) alleging various forms of abuse in church-run native residential schools. A total of about 7,000 survivors of these schools are currently suing the federal government and the religious organizations directly responsible for their inhumane treatment. The eventual number of plaintiffs will probably exceed 10,000. In addition to allegations of personal abuse, many of of the claims are based on the children's separation from their family of origin, and their loss of aboriginal culture. These latter two types claims are new to the courts and have not been tested.
In 1996, the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples recommended that a public inquiry be made into residential schools. This was ignored by the government. Matthew Coon Come, Grand Chief of the Assembly of First Nations, has called for a Canadian version of the Apartheid Truth and Reconciliation Commission that facilitated healing in South Africa. 3 Some Native victims of abuse would be satisfied by an apology from their perpetrator(s) through the offices of such a Commission. Others who are too frail in mind or body to tackle a court battle might welcome it as well.Lawsuits are generally slow moving, exhausting for the plaintiffs, and expensive. Lawyers seem to be the main benefactors in many cases. During 1998 and 1999, the federal government hosted a series of discussions to seek alternatives to litigation. Present were some First Nation survivors, civil servants, and church representatives. As a result of this dialog, twelve pilot projects in alternative dispute resolution were agreed to. "At the present these pilots are limited in their scope and the number of survivors who can participate." 3
In mid-1999, the federal government decided to try another method of avoiding the litigation process. They are seeking a series of out-of-court group settlements. Each of these might include all of the students abused at a single school, or all of the victims who live in a given community. Shawn Tupper, Senior Advisor with the Indian Affairs Department, said: "We are looking for groups with shared interests."
As of 2000-APR-14, the federal government is faced with close to 7,000 claims. Most allege abuse at schools run by Roman Catholic or Anglican groups. "There are approximately 350 claims against The United Church of Canada. In most cases the United Church is named as a co-defendant with the federal government. As well, principals and former workers in the schools are sometimes named as defendants. Some of the claims name specific acts of sexual and/or physical abuse. The larger number of claims focus mainly on loss of language and culture as a result of the residential school experience...The Presbyterian Church, which was involved in two schools following 1925, has a fewer...claims." 4
References used:
- "Judge throws out lawsuits against Anglican Church seeking redress for abuse," The Globe and Mail, Toronto, Canada, 2002-OCT-25, Page A15.
- "Residential Schools Update: Financial Viability: Different Church Structures - Different Messages," United Church of Canada, 2000-MAY-5, at: http://www.uccan.org/airs/000505.htm
- "The United Church of Canada: Residential Schools: Questions and Answers," at: http://www.uccan.org/airs/qa.htm
- "Residential schools update," 2001-APR-14, United Church of Canada, at: http://www.uccan.org/airs/000414.htm
Copyright © 2000 by Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance
Originally written: 2001-JUN-3-
Latest update: 2001-OCT-25
Author: B.A. Robinson
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