Ottawa has 60 Days to Decide Whether to Appeal Compensation Settlement Over Discriminatory Child Welfare System

Yesterday, the Federal Courts approved a settlement to compensate First Nations families who suffered under Canada’s discriminatory child welfare system.

It will provide $40,000 for each child removed from their families since 2006, and for those denied Jordan’s Principle coverage from 2007 to 2017.

That comes through a landmark $23.4 billion agreement, approved by the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal after they rejected a previous $20 billion deal.

But that initial deal also included a separate, additional $20 billion to reform the First Nations child welfare system, which was approved at the time.

Work is currently underway to determine how that money will be spent to counter decades of chronic underfunding and discriminatory practices.

As for the revised compensation agreement, Ottawa will have 60 days to determine whether or not to appeal yesterday’s ruling.

If they choose not to, the process to implement the settlement through a third-party administrator could begin as soon as next year.