“This settlement is an acknowledgement of the pain experienced by women who were subjected to harassment and sexual assault while working or volunteering with the RCMP.”
WOMEN who experienced gender- or sexual-orientation-based harassment and discrimination while working or volunteering with the RCMP on or after September 16, 1974 may be eligible for compensation under a new proposed settlement.
The total value of the settlement is estimated to be $100 million dollars, but the total will depend on how many eligible claims are received. Individual compensation will not be impacted by the number of claims received.
The RCMP and Class Counsel Klein Lawyers LLP and Higgerty Law – on behalf of the plaintiffs Cheryl Tiller, Mary Ellen Copland and Dayna Roach – have reached a settlement in the class action Tiller et al. v. Her Majesty the Queen (Federal Court Action No. T-1673-17) which was filed on behalf of females who worked or volunteered with the RCMP or on RCMP premises. On July 5, the class action was certified by the Federal Court on consent of the parties. The settlement is subject to approval by the Federal Court. The approval hearing will take place on October 17 at the Federal Court in Vancouver.
The settlement includes a confidential independent claims process led by female assessors and a compensation scheme for eligible class members ranging from $10,000 to $220,000 for a proven claim, as determined by an assessor.
(Class Members are all current and former living municipal employees, regional district employees, employees of non-profit organizations, volunteers, commissionaires, supernumerary special constables, consultants, contractors, public service employees, students, members of integrated policing units and persons from outside agencies and police forces who are female or publicly identify as female and who were supervised or managed by the RCMP or who worked in an RCMP controlled workplace during the class period, excluding individuals who are primary class members in Merlo and Davidson v. Her Majesty the Queen, Federal Court Action Number T-1685-16 and class members in Ross, Roy, and Satalic v. Her Majesty the Queen, Federal Court Action Number T-370-17 or Association des membres de la police montée du Québec inc., Gaétan Delisle, Dupuis, Paul, Lachance, Marc v. HMTQ, Quebec Superior Court Number 500-06-000820-163. The class period is September 16, 1974, to July 5, 2019.)
“This settlement is an acknowledgement of the pain experienced by women who were subjected to harassment and sexual assault while working or volunteering with the RCMP. No amount of money can compensate these women for the harms that they’ve endured, but the settlement gives a voice to their experiences. The settlement is a reminder to these women that they’re not alone and, we hope, will give these women the closure they deserve,” says Angela Bespflug, class counsel, Klein Lawyers LLP.
