Residential School Claims Lawyers

Len Marchand, Jr. has been acting for victims of physical and sexual abuse for over 12 years, including a large number of Residential School survivors. Len is of Okanagan ancestry and a member of the Okanagan Indian Band. Len was an active participant in the negotiations that resulted in the national settlement to address the harmful legacy of Residential Schools.  Len was honoured to have been chosen by his peers to serve on the inaugural Oversight Committee for the Independent Assessment Process (IAP) and to have been invited by the Honourable Frank Iacobucci to be a member of the Selection Committee for the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Len has been involved in training IAP adjudicators and has also been a faculty member at the two Continuing Legal Education courses offered by CLEBC regarding the Residential School claims process.  Len is a frequent speaker at community and other gatherings regarding residential school issues. Len is recognized as one of Canada's leading Residential School claim lawyers and brings a lot of insight, experience and expertise to the handling of Residential School claims. If you, your family member or other members of your community would like to speak with Len about making a residential school claim, you can reach Len toll free at 1-877-385-8665, on his direct line at (250) 851-2364, or by email lmarchand@fultonco.com.

Steven Foulds is Associate Counsel with Fulton & Company LLP and a senior lawyer practicing in Nunavut and New Brunswick. Steven lived in Iqaluit, Nunavut from 2000 to 2006 while working for the Inuit land claims organization (Nunavut Tunngavik Inc.). From 2005 Steven has served as a negotiator and advocate for the interests of Inuit and other aboriginal peoples in addressing the legacy of the residential school system. He represented Inuit in negotiations for the Residential School Settlement Agreement and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.  He continues to work to raise awareness in Nunavut of the settlement agreement and the Independent Assessment Process.

Steven is available to assist aboriginal former residential school students. If you, your family member or other members of your community would like to speak with Steve about making a residential school claim, you can reach Steve toll free at 1-877-385-8665, on his Iqaluit telephone at (867) 222-4240, or by email sfoulds@fultonco.com.

Dan Carroll is a Partner and trial lawyer with Fulton & Company LLP. Dan has been conducting hearings and resolving claims for his clients at all levels of Court in British Columbia for 10 years. Dan has successfully resolved many personal injury claims for his clients, including physical and sexual abuse claims. Dan has a particular interest in First Nations issues and has represented aboriginal people in a variety of areas, including blockades/protests, election issues, on reserve Wills and Estates problems, tax issues, commercial negotiations regarding use of aboriginal lands, and aboriginal oriented sentencing hearings. Dan is committed to assisting survivors resolve their Residential School claims and is working closely with Len Marchand and the rest of the team at Fulton & Company LLP to provide legal help to survivors. If you, your family member or other members of your community would like to speak with Dan about making a Residential School claim, you can reach Dan toll free at 1-877-385-8665, on his direct line at (250) 851-2335, or by email dcarroll@fultonco.com.

Aaron Sam is an Associate and trial lawyer with Fulton & Company LLP.  Aaron has been practicing as a trial lawyer at all levels of court in British Columbia for over 4 years.  Aaron is Nlaka’pamux, a former Councillor, and a member of the Lower Nicola Indian Band.  Aaron has experience working with First Nations people representing them as a trial lawyer in many different capacities.  Aaron is committed to assisting survivors resolve their Residential School claims and is working with Len Marchand and the rest of the team at Fulton & Company LLP to provide legal help to survivors.  If you, your family member or other members of your community would like to speak with Aaron about making a Residential School claim, you can reach Aaron toll free at 1-877-385-8665, on his direct line at (250) 851-2372, or by email asam@fultonco.com.

Ayla Salyn is an Associate with Fulton & Company LLP.   In the last year, Ayla has appeared at both Provincial and Supreme Court levels in British Columbia.  Ayla has experience with personal injury matters and a background of assisting victims of physical and sexual abuse.  Some of Ayla’s previous volunteer experiences include being part of a crisis and suicide telephone response team, a teacher assistant for children with disabilities and a researcher for Correctional Services of Canada.  Ayla has a particular interest in First Nations issues and is committed to assisting survivors resolve their Residential School claims by working closely with Len Marchand and the rest of the team at Fulton & Company LLP.  If you, your family member or other members of your community would like to speak with Ayla about making a Residential School claim, you can reach Ayla toll free at 1-877-385-8665, on her direct line at (250) 851-2323 or by email asalyn@fultonco.com.

 

Indian Residential School Claims

For over 100 years, Canada and various churches operated Residential Schools all across the country. Attendance at these residential boarding schools was compulsory for many aboriginal people. Today, there are approximately 80,000 survivors.

Since the mid 1990s, survivors of "Native Residential Schools" have sought compensation from Canada and various churches for physical, sexual and emotional abuse and for language and cultural losses arising from the survivors' attendance at Residential Schools.

Over the years, many survivors pursued compensation through the courts while others utilized an Alternative Dispute Resolution ("ADR") Process created by Canada. Several class actions were also filed. Thousands of former students received compensation for abuse through court awards, out-of-court settlements and ADR awards.

On May 30, 2005, Canada signed a historic "political agreement" with the Assembly of First Nations concerning Residential Schools. The political agreement opened the door to national negotiations aimed at a full, fair and comprehensive settlement of Residential School claims. These national negotiations have resulted in a national settlement to address the harmful legacy of Indian Residential Schools. The key elements of the national settlement are:

  1. Common Experience Payments (CEPs) for survivors for language, cultural and other losses based on the number of years the survivor lived at a Residential School. Each survivor alive as of May 30, 2005 is eligible to receive $10,000 for the first school year (or part of a school year) and $3,000 for each school year (or part of a school year) after that.
  2. A non-adversarial Independent Assessment Process (IAP) to award additional compensation to survivors who suffered sexual abuse or certain types of serious physical or other abuse. (This will not be available to survivors who have already resolved their individual abuse claims through litigation. In limited circumstances, additional compensation may be available through the IAP for survivors who have resolved their abuse claims in ADR);
  3. Funding for local, regional and national commemoration;
  4. Funding for the Aboriginal Healing Foundation; and
  5. A Truth and Reconciliation Process to explore and record for all time the lasting legacy of Residential Schools.

By March 2007, nine courts across the country approved the settlement. Following a massive public notice program, survivors also overwhelmingly approved the settlement. Implementation commenced on September 19, 2007.

Common Experience Payments and Independent Assessment Process application forms are available below. While most survivors are capable of applying for Common Experience Payments without legal representation, we strongly recommend legal advice for the Independent Assessment Process. The IAP is a technical legal process and good legal representation will ensure the best opportunity for a good outcome.


The national settlement is the largest and most complex settlement of its kind in Canadian history. The information on this website is only a summary. Individual circumstances vary widely and we encourage survivors to seek legal advice about their options. We offer free consultations to survivors who need help understanding the settlement.
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If you, your family member or other members of your community would like to speak to Len Marchand, Dan Carroll or another member of Fulton & Company's dedicated team of residential school specialists, you can reach them toll free at 1-877-385-8665, or on their direct lines or email as noted above.