Settlement approved in N.S. deaf students’ class action suit 

The settlement for a class action lawsuit revolving around the abuse of former students at schools for deaf children in Nova Scotia was approved by the Supreme Court on Friday.

Richard Martell, one of two representative plaintiffs in the case, said the approval of the settlement moved him.

“I felt tears in my eyes and a deep sense of relief that this journey was coming to an end,” Martell told The Signal in a statement following the hearing.

“I want the world to recognize that we will no longer suffer in silence or be neglected. I believe that even those from our community — even those who lived in silence — can now be at peace.”

The lawsuit was filed in 2015 and alleges systemic abuse occurred at both the School for the Deaf in Halifax and the Interprovincial School for the Education of the Deaf in Amherst. The Halifax school closed in 1961, and the Amherst school in 1995. 

There are 1,170 students estimated to have attended the schools, with an estimated 908 still living. 

The class action alleged the province of Nova Scotia and the Atlantic Provinces Special Education Authority (APSEA) were negligent in their duties to ensure students’ safety. They said they suffered physical, emotional, and sexual abuse while attending the schools between 1913 and the closure of the Amherst school in 1995.

“I’ve heard the submissions, read all the materials, and I’ve looked at the settlement agreement that was developed between the parties and agreed to, and I am unquestionably in favour of signing it,” Justice Peter Rosinski told the court on Nov. 28.

The settlement consists of $36 million paid — $14 million will make up a systemic harms payment fund, and $22 million will make up the independent assessment process fund.

The amount paid through the systemic harms payment fund will be based on how long a former student attended school and could reach $20,000. Funding is available to former students who attended either school between 1913 and 1995 who was alive on or after Jan. 31, 2019, the date the class action was certified.

Former students do not need to provide any information on abuse they faced to receive compensation from the systemic harms fund. 

To receive compensation for more specific abuse, former students can register for an individual assessment process payment, in which case they will meet with an evaluator to discuss their personal experience at the school. Payment will be decided based on the severity of the abuse the individual suffered, and could amount to $150,000. 

An honorarium of $15,000 will be awarded to both Martell and Michael Perrier, the representative plaintiffs in the case.