FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Quebec Superior Court authorizes FAQ-Paillé class action for people who were unable to obtain Indian status before 2017 (Bill S-3) because of the Indian Act’s discriminatory registration rules against Indigenous women and their descendants.

A.Questions from members

• 1. What is a class action?

  A class action is a type of legal proceeding that allows one person to take legal action on behalf of himself or herself and all others in a similar situation. All these people are the “members” of the class action. If the class action is successful, the members are entitled to the compensation decided by the court, often in the form of a monetary award.
  The advantage of class action is that it gives many people access to justice by allowing one person to represent them. Class actions are advantageous and economical for members, since they do not have to pay the costs of legal action individually.

• 2. What is the aim of the FAQ-Paillé class action?

  The purpose of the FAQ-Paillé class action is to obtain financial compensation from the Government of Canada for thousands of people who were affected by the discriminatory registration rules of the Indian Act, namely those who benefited from the 2017 amendments to the Indian Act provisions (Bill S-3).
  The class action seeks to compensate these individuals for the damages they suffered because they or their descendants were unable to obtain Indian status – or a status that could be passed on to the next generation – before Bill S-3 came into force.

• 3. Am I a member of this class action? Who is included in this class action?

  The class action includes people who are entitled to be registered as Indians under the Indian Act,
  but who only became entitled to Indian status or to 6(1) status after the 2017 amendments to the Indian Act (Bill S-3).
  You are automatically a member of the class action if you fall into one of the following three categories:

  Category A: the grandchildren of an Indian woman who lost her status through marriage, provided that they were born before April 17, 1985 or of a marriage entered into before that date, as well as their direct descendants;
  Category B: women born out of wedlock to an Indian man and a non-Indian woman and their direct descendants;
  Category C: minors enfranchised due to the marriage of their mother to a non-Indian man before April 17, 1985 and their direct descendants

  We invite you to consult the complete description of the categories in the notice to members, here.

• 4. Do I have to be registered as an Indian to be a member of the class action?

  No, you don’t have to be registered as an Indian, but you do have to be eligible for Indian status. For a detailed description of the categories of class action members, you can consult the complete description on the notice to members, here.

• 5. Why did Quebec Native Women file this lawsuit?

  Quebec Native Women’s (“QNW”) mission is to represent and defend the interests of Indigenous women in Quebec, to fight for their equal rights and to fight against systemic discrimination and racism.
  Since its inception, QNW has campaigned to eradicate the discriminatory rules of the Indian Act and continues to denounce the residual discriminatory effects of this legislation to this day. The FAQ-Paillé class action, in which QNW acts as plaintiff and representative of the class members, is in keeping with the organization’s mission.

• 6. How far has the class action progressed, and what are the next steps?

  The class action was authorized by the Quebec Superior Court on June 15, 2023, thus passing the first “screening” stage. The class action has now begun. The next step will be for the plaintiffs (QNW and Isabelle Paillé) to present their arguments before the Court. The plaintiffs’ allegations have not yet been proven, and the Court has not yet decided whether Canada committed a fault.
  If the Court concludes that Canada has committed a fault with regard to certain discriminatory registration rules, it will then decide how much Canada should pay the members of the class action.

• 7. What impact will this class action have on me? Will this action affect my Indian status or that of my children under the Indian Act?

  If you are a member of the class action and the action is successful, you may be entitled to a sum of money for the losses you have suffered (see question 15).
  If you are a member of the class action and the action is lost, you will be bound by the unfavorable judgment. This means you will not be able to take your own legal action on the same subject afterwards.
  The class action will have no impact on the registration rules set out in the Indian Act; no changes to the Indian Act are sought by the class action. It will also have no impact on the application of registration rules to individuals.

• 8. Will this class action entitle me to more services from the band of which I am a member?

  No, this class action will not entitle you to services from your band or from Canada.
  Instead, the FAQ-Paillé class action aims to compensate you for damages suffered as a result of not being able to benefit from Indian status and the services that flow from it (or as a result of your descendants not being able to benefit from Indian status) before the amendments to the Indian Act adopted in 2017 (Bill S-3) came into force.

• 9. What do I have to do to join the class action?

  You are automatically a member of the class action if you fall into one of the three categories summarized in question 3.
  If you wish to remain part of this class action, you don’t need to do anything.

• 10. I don’t want to be a member of the class action. How can I opt out/be excluded from the class action?

  If you wish to be excluded from the class action, you must complete the opt-out form found here and mail it to the office of the Superior Court of Quebec before September 13, 2023.
  We strongly recommend that you send a copy of the form to the class’s lawyers.
  The relevant addresses are:

  Quebec Superior Court Registry
  1 Notre-Dame Street East
  Montréal (Québec) H2Y 1B6
  DIONNE SCHULZE
  507 Place d’Armes, #502
  Montréal (Québec) H2Y 2W8
  E-mail: paille@dionneschulze.ca
  

• 11. What are my rights and responsibilities in this class action?

  You have the right to decide to remain a member of the class action or to opt out.
  As a member of the class action, you can apply to the Court to intervene in the class action. Intervention allows a person who is not already part of the litigation to join and present his or her own arguments. The Court will authorize the intervention if it is of the opinion that it is useful to the class, for example if it raises arguments that are different from those of the representative plaintiffs. If you hire your own lawyer, you are responsible for paying any fees or expenses he or she may set.
  As for your responsibilities, you don’t have any. The class action is led by QNW, with the participation of Isabelle Paillé.
  Participation by the members of the action will only be required at the end of the process, if the action is successful. It is at this point that class members will be able to claim compensation. There will then be a notice to inform members of the outcome of the class action and how to claim compensation, if applicable. We are not at this stage of the process.
  To keep abreast of developments in the class action, you can fill in the form on the Dionne Schulze website. here.

• 12. Do I have to pay anything? Do I need to hire a lawyer?

  No. Class members do not have to pay the legal costs of the class action. Being a class member costs you nothing, and you don’t have to hire a lawyer. Class members are already represented by the law firm Dionne Schulze.

• 13. What will I receive at the end of the class action?

  The goal of the class action is to obtain compensation for the moral and monetary losses (damages) that the members of the class have suffered as a result of the discriminatory registration rules of the Indian Act.
  The moral damages alleged by the class action consist of the grief, confusion and sense of injustice suffered by the members, stemming from the fact that they and/or their descendants were not recognized as Indians or as “fully” Indians because the status they enjoyed did not allow them to pass it on to their children.
  Alleged monetary damages include medical, dental and other expenses covered by the Non-Insured Health Benefits Program, as well as post-secondary education costs incurred by members for themselves and/or their descendants.
  If the class action is successful, the members of the class could be compensated for these moral and monetary damages.
  

• 14. How long will this class action last?

  It’s difficult to estimate the length of the process, but it’s likely to be a long one. Given the many stages potentially ahead, it could take a few years before the class action is resolved.

• 15. How will I know when the class action is over?

  You can join the mailing list at the law firm Dionne Schulze to receive updates on the status of the case. To do so, please fill in the form on the Dionne Schulze website, here.

• 16. How can I submit a claim?

  If the action is successful, class members will be able to claim compensation.
  At that time, a notice will be published to informing members of the outcome of the class action and indicating when and how to claim the available compensation. The class action is not at this stage.

• 17. Who are the lawyers in this class action?

  The Montreal-based law firm of Dionne Schulze is representing class members in this class action, in collaboration with the Law Office of Mary Eberts in Toronto.

• 18. Whom can I contact for more information?

  For more information, you can contact the law firm Dionne Schulze, which represents the members of the class, by email or telephone:

  E-mail address: paille@dionneschulze.ca
  Toll-free line: 1-833-333-0748

B. Questions from Band Councils

• 19. Will this class action have an effect on Band Councils, and if so, what?

  This class action will not impose any additional burden on bands. It is an action against Canada, seeking monetary compensation from Canada for the class members. The members of the class already have or are eligible for Indian status.
  
  The class action will not affect the registration rules of the Indian Act; it will not lead to the creation of new categories of Indian status r the inclusion of new band members.
  
  The class action will also have no impact on the services bands provide their members. The purpose of the action is to compensate class members for the period during which they were not eligible for Indian status, and therefore did not have access to the benefits that come with it. If the class action leads to compensation being awarded to the members, it will be Canada (or a third-party organization) that will be responsible for administering the compensation, not the bands.
  
  Furthermore, the class action will have no impact on the way Band Councils manage the funding they receive from Canada. It also does not affect Canada’s funding rules and policies for the various services offered to status members.
  
  The only effect that the class action could have on Band Councils is that members may come to them with questions. We invite Band Councils to direct such questions to class counsel at the Dionne Schulze office:

  E-mail address: paille@dionneschulze.ca.
  Toll-free line: 1-833-333-0748.
  

  For more information, please visit the Quebec Native Women website at the following address: .
  Website: www.faq-qnw.org