Judge approves $31.5M settlement in sexual assault case against Quebec archdiocese

MONTREAL — A Quebec Superior Court judge has approved a historic $31.5-million settlement for sexual assault claimants in a class-action lawsuit against the Quebec City archdiocese. The agreement ends a years-long legal saga for claimants who say they were sexually abused by priests and laypeople in positions of authority at the Catholic organization going back to 1940. Plaintiffs Gaétan Bégin and Pierre Bolduc, who spearheaded the class action, say they were sexually assaulted by parish priests starting in the 1950s and 1960s when they were aged 14 and 12, respectively.

Scores of alleged victims — both men and women — have said they plan to participate in the case. The lawsuit marks the first class action to target an entire diocese for sexual assaults allegedly committed by clergy members. The Quebec City archdiocese covers the provincial capital and surrounding area as well as the Chaudière-Appalaches, Charlevoix and Beauce regions.

The diocese said Friday it welcomed the news of the settlement’s sign-off by a judge, “recognizing that this new stage of reparation will help members continue their journey toward peace and healing,” church officials stated in a press release. The parties presented the agreement to judge Danye Daigle on July 30, when she heard emotional testimony from victims who described how the alleged traumas affected their lives. Bishop Jean Tailleur, a priest at the archdiocese, addressed victims in the Quebec City courtroom that day.

“Faced with the suffering you endure, there is little that my words can alleviate or heal. On behalf of the Catholic Church of Quebec, I wish to offer you our sincerest apologies,” he said. Victims have three months to submit a claim outlining the alleged abuse and how it shaped their lives, the Dufresne Wee law firm said Saturday.

The amount paid out to recipients will be determined by two retired judges. The Quebec City archdiocese will issue a letter of apology to each victim whose claim is accepted, the firm said. The judge approved the out-of-court settlement on Wednesday, according to the law firm and the archdiocese.

Plaintiff Gaétan Bégin claimed to have been assaulted multiple times by parish priest Rosaire Giguère in the Eastern Townships village of Saint-Ludger starting in 1954, when he was 14 years old, and continuing until he was 17. MONTREAL - A Quebec law firm says a provincial Superior Court judge has approved a historic $31.5-million settlement for sexual assault claimants in a class-action lawsuit against the Quebec City archdiocese.