Marist Brothers Quebec Abuse Settlement — $24.95M CAD

Survivor Compensation · Claims Open

Current Status

Claims are open. The deadline to submit a claim form is December 17, 2026; the official documents give a date only, with no time of day or timezone. The Superior Court of Québec approved the settlement on June 8, 2026. Payment amounts will not be known until every claim has been decided, and the approved process gives the claims adjudicator three months after the deadline to issue decisions and distribute compensation.

What Changed Recently?

The claim period opened after the Superior Court of Québec approved the settlement on June 8, 2026. Under the agreement, the Marist Brothers congregation (Les Frères Maristes) and related entities will pay a total of $24,950,000 CAD to resolve a class action that alleged sexual assaults by religious members of the congregation were committed systemically over decades at several locations in Quebec.

The case was authorized as a class action by the Superior Court, and on May 17, 2023 a judge of the Quebec Court of Appeal refused the congregation's request for permission to appeal that authorization. A trial was scheduled to begin April 7, 2026. The parties signed a settlement agreement in April 2026, shortly before trial, and the court held the approval hearing on May 25, 2026.

The settlement agreement states that the payment, and the defendants' decision not to take part in the claims process, is not an admission that the allegations are true. No court has made findings against the defendants in this case.

Who Qualifies?

The approved class includes all people who were sexually assaulted by a religious member of the congregation known as the Marist Brothers anywhere in Quebec. The class definition is not limited to one institution or time period: it covers schools, colleges, training institutions, recreation and youth centres, camps, residences and places of worship, among other locations.

The liquidator of the estate of a class member who died on or after June 2, 2019 may also file on the estate's behalf.

One group is carved out. People who belong to the separate Patro Lokal de St-Hyacinthe class action, which covers people abused by Marist Brothers members or employees while attending or staying at the Patro Lokal residence in St-Hyacinthe between 1970 and 1986, are excluded from this class unless they opted out of that case.

How Much Compensation Is Available?

The $24.95 million CAD fund is all-inclusive. Before compensation is paid, it covers class counsel's fees and disbursements as approved by the court, the adjudicator's fees and other administration costs, the cost of publishing notices, and $300,000 CAD to the representative plaintiff, which the agreement describes as the maximum amount any member can receive.

The adjudicator places each accepted claim into one of three categories, using the claimant's sworn testimony, claim form and any supporting documents, and considering the effects the assaults had on the claimant's life:

• Basic compensation, which serves as the base amount.
• Extraordinary compensation, level 1, paid at 1.5 times the base amount. No more than 20% of accepted claimants can be placed in this category.
• Extraordinary compensation, level 2, paid at twice the base amount, up to a maximum of $300,000 CAD. No more than 20% of accepted claimants can be placed in this category.

An estate claim receives half of the basic compensation amount.

No dollar figure has been set for any category. The base amount depends on how much remains in the fund after fees and costs and on how many claims are accepted in each category, so it can only be calculated after the adjudicator has decided every claim. The agreement notes the $300,000 CAD maximum could be lower depending on the number of accepted claims. Any money left after distribution is subject to the levy of Quebec's Fonds d'aide aux actions collectives.