The Federal Court has rejected the federal government’s motion to dismiss a claim for monetary relief in a class-action lawsuit brought by non-status individuals and Métis who were involved in the so-called “’60s Scoop.”
It’s also granting the plaintiffs’ request for a motion declaring that the Crown had a duty of care to these kids — but only the ones placed or adopted through Saskatchewan’s Adopt Indian Métis [AIM] program.
The ’60s Scoop refers to a period when governments in Canada oversaw the large-scale removal of Indigenous children from their homes to live outside of their communities, mostly with non-Indigenous caregivers.
A class-action settlement for survivors saw the federal government pay about $750 million in compensation — but Métis were largely excluded from that because child welfare services for them were run by the provinces.
Métis and non-status individuals who were apprehended as children from their families filed a class-action lawsuit arguing Canada should compensate them as well — but the Federal Court says Ottawa is not liable.
The Federal Court says that only those who were placed or adopted through Saskatchewan’s AIM program fall under Canada’s duty of care because that program received federal funding.
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