There can be several reasons why your Claim is ineligible. It could be because:

• the school, or for the years you attended the school, was not operate and controlled solely by the federal government,
• you opted out of this Settlement,
• you have already received compensation for the same harms through another settlement with the federal government, and/or
• the Claim is on behalf of an estate and the deceased died before July 31, 2007.

The reason for your ineligibility will be listed in the letter from the Administrator. If you have questions about your ineligibility letter, we encourage you to contact Class Counsel at 1.844.539.3815 or DaySchools@GowlingWLG.com.

If your Claim is found ineligible and you have evidence that may demonstrate you are eligible, such as school records, you can submit that evidence within:

• 120 days of the date of the ineligibility decision, or
• June 27, 2027, whichever is later.

Canada will review the new information. If Canada agrees that you are eligible, the Claims Administrator will reprocess your original Claim.

To have access to your school records, you may want to consider an ATIP request. Here are the steps to do so:

1. Go to the ATIP request page
2. Select “Continue”
3. If you are the Claimant, select “my personal information”. If you are Personal representative select “Personal information about someone other than myself”
4. Select “Indigenous Services Canada”
5. Create an account or select “Proceed as guest”
6. Enter your email address and verify it
7. Select the option that applies to you
8. Under Request label write “[Claimant Name] school records”
9. Under Request description write, “All Federal Indian day school records for [Claimant Name]”
10. Under Language of record select your preference
11. Under Request format select “Electronic”
12. At the next step, you may attach documents if you wish (this is necessary if you are requesting information about someone else)
13. On the next page, provide all your personal information. Under Preferred method of communication for correspondence, select “email”
14. Confirm all the request details and click Submit

Unless there was an error in how your Claim was processed concerning the application of Schedule K (the school list) or you have documentation showing you did in fact attend a school listed on Schedule K, a letter of ineligibility means you are not part of the Survivor Class and therefore not eligible for compensation under this process.

Please note that if you are ineligible to claim compensation under this Settlement, you may still bring a separate lawsuit against the individuals or organizations responsible for the abuse you experienced.

If you have questions about your ineligibility letter, we encourage you to contact Class Counsel at 1.844.539.3815 or DaySchools@GowlingWLG.com.

The Claims Administrator reviews each Claim Form and determines the level of compensation based on the information and documents you provided.

Social Benefits

The Settlement Agreement provides that there should be no impact on benefits including social assistance, Old Age Security (OAS), and Canada Pension Plan (CPP). For more information, visit section 5.06 of the Settlement Agreement.

The Government of Canada has committed to working with provincial and territorial governments and Federal departments to ensure that any payment Claimants receive will not affect the amount, nature, or duration of any provincial or territorial social benefits. Similar efforts were successful with respect to the Indian Residential School Settlement payments.

Tax

Payments from this lawsuit are not taxable. These payments compensate for abuse and harms at Federal Indian Day Schools or Federal Day Schools. The Canada Revenue Agency makes it clear that litigation damages for personal injuries are not taxable income.

OAS and Guaranteed Income Supplement

There will be no impact on OAS and Guaranteed Income Supplement payments. The Old Age Security Act defines income in accordance with the Income Tax Act. Litigation payments for personal injury, including psychological harm, are exempt from the Canada Revenue Agency definition of income.

The OAS pension is a monthly payment available to seniors aged 65 and older who meet the Canadian legal status and residence requirements. Low-income seniors are also eligible for the Guaranteed Income Supplement which is added to OAS. Neither will be impacted by compensation received from this Settlement.

CPP

There will be no impact on CPP. Eligibility for CPP is based on age and contribution to CPP by working in Canada. It is not based on present income levels but contributions over the beneficiary’s lifetime.

If you receive a letter from the Claims Administrator saying your Claim was placed at a lower level than the one you chose, this is not the final decision. You still have options.

Please read the letter carefully. It explains why your Claim was assessed at a lower level and includes a Reconsideration Decision Form. You have 120 days from the date of the letter to decide what you would like to do next.

You can:

1. Accept the level the Administrator has given, or
2. Ask for a Reconsideration of your Claim.

If you ask for a Reconsideration, the Claims Administrator will look at your Claim again. You can send in any new or missing information that you think will help show why your Claim should be at a higher level. The Claims Administrator will review your narrative and any new details using the same harm level criteria that appear in the Claim Form.

Call 1.844.539.3815 or email DaySchools@GowlingWLG.com.

If, after the Reconsideration, the Claims Administrator keeps your Claim at a lower level than you selected, you can ask for your Claim to be appealed and reviewed by the Independent Assessor. The Independent Assessor’s decisions are final.

Please note: This review process is only for Claimants who disagree with the level the Claims Administrator assigned. It is not available to people who wish to change their selected level after their Claim Form was first submitted or to challenge an ineligibility decision.

If one of your loved ones who submitted a claim before January 13, 2023, and has passed away recently, you should notify the Claims Administrator right away. You will need to fill out Part 7 of the Claim Form and provide additional documentation.

Contact the Claims Administrator for more details:

Email: indiandayschools@deloitte.ca
Fax: 416.366.1102
Mail: PO Box 1775, Toronto, ON Canada M5C 0A2

A validly appointed estate representative will have the ability to seek a Reconsideration or Appeal to the Independent Assessor on behalf of the deceased Claimant. For more information, please see the Estates Infographic.

To be validly appointed as an estate representative, Part 7 of the Claim Form will have to be submitted along with supporting documents. Do not send original documents.

If the deceased Claimant lived on reserve prior to passing away and did not have a will, we recommend that you call one of Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) Regional Offices to be appointed as the Estate Administrator. The Regional Office that will be responsible for the estate depends on the province/territory where the individual died. To start the process, the death must be reported to ISC. To report the death of a registered family member, you can provide ISC with a copy of the following documents:

• Vital statistics death record or extract
• Church death certificate
• Coroner’s report
• Burial permit
• Internment certificate

You can send the documents to them by mail:

Indigenous Services Canada, Office of the Indian Registrar
10 Wellington Street
Gatineau QC K1A 0H4

OR

By sending them to the ISC Regional Office (contact the Regional Office in the region where the individual died for appropriate address. See phone numbers below.)

OR

By email: Aadnc.Estates-Successions.Aandc@Canada.ca

The Regional Office Numbers are the following:

• Atlantic Region: 1.800.567.9604 or 1.902.661.6200
• Quebec: 1.800.567.9604 or 1.800.263.5592
• Ontario: 1.416.973.6234
• Manitoba: 1.800.567.9604
• Saskatchewan: 1.306.780.5392
• Alberta: 1-780-495-2773
• British Columbia: 1.604.775.7114 or 1.604.775.5100
• Northwest Territories: 1.867.669.2500
• Yukon: 1.867.667.3888

To apply to be appointed as the Estate Administrator, you will need to obtain (1) a copy of the Death Certificate and (2) a copy of the Application for Administration from your Regional Office. Once completed, send the Application for Administration to ISC.

When individuals contact ISC requesting to be appointed as an Estate Administrator, ISC may seek the following information:

• your name and contact information (e.g., address, email, phone number)
• the full name, date of birth, date of death and registration number of the deceased (copy of the status card, if available)
• confirmation of whether the deceased lived on or off reserve at the time of death
• proof of death (see above for acceptable documentation)
• confirmation of whether the deceased had a will

Please note that provincial law governs estate appointments for deceased Claimants who lived in a First Nation community with a “modern treaty.”

You will need to start the appointment process with the provincial court in which the deceased Claimant last resided.

As Class Counsel, Gowling WLG does not handle any estate legal services related to the Claims process. Prior to taking steps with the court to be appointed as an Estate Administrator, we recommend you seek independent legal advice.

The local provincial/territorial Public Trustee Office may already be administering the deceased Claimant’s estate. You may wish to contact them before taking further steps. If the deceased Claimant lived off reserve and did not have a will, a representative will need to be appointed as an Estate Administrator. The appointment of an Estate Administrator is a process governed by your local jurisdiction (i.e., provincial or territorial court). Unless the deceased person resided in the Province of Quebec, you will need to start the appointment process with the court.

If the deceased Claimant resided in the Province of Quebec, then the heirs must appoint a liquidator. Once appointed, the liquidator may submit a Claim Form along with the following documents:

1. Death Certificate;
2. Certificate of Will search by Chamber of notaries;
3. Certificate of Will search by Quebec Law Society; and

ONE of the following:

1. Declaration of hereditary (sworn before a notary, lawyer or Commissioner of Oaths); OR
2. A designation of a liquidator by the heirs (e.g. Revenue Quebec form LM-14.1, BD-81.7 or BD-81.4-V).

Please note that if a will is disputed or an estate is contested by family members, the Administrator may require additional documents, including a judgment issued by a superior court and a probated will.

If the deceased Claimant resided in the Province of Quebec and the will or estate is under dispute, the Administrator would require a probate judgment issued by the Superior Court of Quebec or by a Notary authorized by law to probate wills; in addition, the will must be certified by the Superior Court of Quebec or by the Notary who probated the will.

• As Class Counsel, Gowling WLG does not handle any estate legal services related to the Claims process. Prior to taking steps with the court to be appointed as an Estate Administrator, we recommend you seek independent legal advice.

The Settlement includes a $200 million Legacy Fund to support commemoration projects, health and wellness programs, “truth-telling” events, as well as the restoration and preservation of Indigenous languages and culture.

For more information, visit https://mcleanlegacyfund.ca/.

Telephone: 1-844-539-3815
Email: DaySchools@GowlingWLG.com.

We continuously provide updates through our Facebook Group @McLeanClassAction.

Yes, you can contact the toll-free Hope for Wellness Help Line. Counselling is available in English, French, Cree, Ojibway and Inuktitut, on request.

Phone: 1-855-242-3310 or
Online chat: www.HopeForWellness.ca.

Any Claimant retaining non-Class Counsel releases Class Counsel from any ongoing responsibilities to them. The retainer of non-Class Counsel must outline the consequences that a retainer with them will have on the usual duties and responsibilities owed by Class Counsel to the Claimant.

By signing a separate retainer agreement and/or choosing to use a lawyer other than Class Counsel, the Claimant will be deemed to have given up their access to free legal services from Class Counsel and will be deemed to have released Class Counsel from their obligations to support that particular Claimant.