OVERVIEW

Indigenous Youth in British Columbia

The Claims: This case makes two types of claims.

Child Services: First, it alleges that the governments of Canada and British Columbia (1) did not adequately fund child services for Indigenous children, and funded it less than they funded child services for non-Indigenous children; (2) implemented funding structures and policies that prioritized removing Indigenous children from their homes instead of providing Indigenous parents with services to care for their children at home; (3) failed to consider placing Indigenous children in customary care; and (4) placed Indigenous children in culturally and physically unsafe settings, in which the children had limited to no access to their families, communities, cultures, or languages.

Essential Services: Second, it alleges that the governments of Canada and British Columbia failed to provide, or delayed in providing essential health and social services to Indigenous children.

The Class: This case seeks to represent:

(1) all off-reserve Indigenous (First Nations, Métis, and Inuit) children in British Columbia who were removed from their homes while they were under the age of 18, since 1992; and

(2) the caregiving parents and grandparents of those children.

Our Partners: We are bringing this claim and parallel claims in other provinces with a consortium of firms across the country, including Murphy Battista (BC), Miller Titerle (BC), Cochrane Saxberg (Manitoba), and Kugler Kandestin (Quebec).

The court will decide at a later date if the case will proceed as a class action.

Updates