Canada agreed to “forever release” Catholic entities from their pledge to raise $25 million for residential school survivors and also picked up their legal bill, a final release document shows.
The Canadian press obtained a signed copy of the 2015 agreement through federal access to information laws, marking what appears to be the first time the document has been widely released.
“This is a very, very important set of records,” said Ry Moran, associate librarian at the University of Victoria and founding director of the National Center for Truth and Reconciliation.
“Like all questions about accountability? the question is who made the decision? How was that decision made? Who ultimately signed off on this?”
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Indigenous leaders and legal experts have long questioned why Ottawa chose to drop an appeal of a court ruling that meant Catholic entities did not have to pay their remaining financial obligations under the historic Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement.
The actions of the Catholic groups involved _ and by extension the Catholic Church as an institution _ as well as Ottawa have come under renewed scrutiny since the discovery of what are believed to be hundreds of unmarked graves at the former schools residential, which First Nations began announcing last year.
The dispute in question arose years earlier and culminated in a court decision handed down by a Saskatchewan judge in July 2015.
The residential school settlement required the 48 Catholic entities involved to pay $79 million, which was split into three parts, including making “best efforts” to raise $25 million for residential school survivors.
There was a disagreement between Ottawa and the Catholic entities about part of their obligations.
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At issue was whether lawyers for both sides had reached an agreement to release the church groups from all their financial obligations, including $25 million to survivors, in exchange for a payment of $1.2 million dollars, or they only had an agreement that covers a narrower portion of their financial responsibilities.
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Ultimately, Judge Neil Gabrielson ruled that the settlement covered all of the church’s financial obligations, allowing the Catholic entities to abandon their fundraising pledge to survivors after raising less than $4 million.
Records obtained by The Canadian Press show that a month after that July 2015 decision, federal officials filed a “protective notice of appeal” while negotiating a final release agreement with the Catholic groups.
On October 30, 2015, the former deputy minister signed a final agreement at what had been called Aboriginal and Northern Affairs Canada, releasing Catholic entities from their financial obligations.
“Canada forever releases, releases and discharges Catholic entities? their directors, officers, shareholders, agents, attorneys and employees? from and from all manner of actions, causes of action, suits, debts, dues, accounts, sureties against those released,” he says.
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It continues: “Canada undertakes and does not agree directly or indirectly to join, assist, assist or act in any way in concert with any person or entity to make any claim or financial demand against the released.”
The signed agreement was released as part of more than 200 pages of briefing documents and court records prepared for Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Marc Miller last fall after he pledged to find out what happened that led to Canada to drop its appeal. Many of the government records were redacted in part or in whole.
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Miller, at least in one media interview, has expressed openness to the idea of revisiting the government’s 2015 decision.
However, Canada’s agreement to “free forever” Catholic entities and the broad language of the signed document raise questions about whether that can happen.
“The minister committed to understanding the circumstances and events that led the government of the day to withdraw the appeal,” Miller’s office said in a statement on Friday.
“Furthermore, he pledged to ensure that the Catholic Church was held accountable.”
A spokesman also deferred questions to the Justice Department about legal fees paid by Canada.
Government documents suggest that the decision to appeal hinged on whether the Catholic entities would seek further relief and expand it to focus on their non-financial commitments under the settlement agreement.
“Should discussions on the order result in a release limited to three financial obligations, Canada will not appeal,” says a document from September 2015. It included an illegible signature of a former government minister Stephen Harper’s Conservative Party, which at the time was in the middle of a federal election campaign.
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Miller said it belonged to Bernard Valcourt, Harper’s former Aboriginal Affairs minister.
The document noted that releasing them from some of their non-financial obligations “could pose a significant risk to Canada.”
“A particular concern for Canada would be to release Catholic entities from obligations such as cooperating in the defense or resolution of all Indian residential school abuse claims outside of the settlement agreement.”
While he said the court decision could free Catholic entities from the “$21.5 million shortfall” in their fundraising campaign for survivors, “the likelihood of forcing Catholic entities to comply with their remaining fundraising obligations are very low.”
Finally, the document said that appealing would mean Canada would be back at “square one” when it comes to trying to reach an agreement on the settlement money with the Catholic entities.
Ken Young, a former regional chief of the Assembly of First Nations and a residential school survivor, said he doubts Canada would have succeeded in an appeal.
“Canada could have litigated until the cows came home,” he said in a recent interview. “I think we’re in a new stage.”
Young, who criticizes how Catholic churches said fundraising would depend on their “best efforts,” believes leaders have learned their lesson.
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He points to a pledge made by the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops for dioceses to raise $30 million for reconciliation-related efforts over five years. In July, they reported raising $4.6 million.
Young believes the bishops will keep their word, but said given the wealth of the Vatican and the Catholic Church as an institution, fundraising should not be necessary.
“Write a check today, don’t mind bothering your parishioners to cash it.”
© 2022 The Canadian Press