Legal claims increasing

The number of legal claims against the Anglican Church of Canada now totals 72.

Meanwhile, final arguments were due to be heard during the week of Sept. 28 in the St. George’s Residential School case. Floyd Mowatt lived at the Lytton, B.C., residence and says he was sexually assaulted by a former dormitory supervisor between 1965 and 1970.

The church has argued the federal government ran the school and should be held liable for any abuses that took place at Lytton.

In addition, the Anglican Church has been granted intervenor status in a Supreme Court of Canada case on vicarious liability. Arguments from the intervenors were to be heard by Supreme Court Justice Beverley McLachlin on Oct. 6.

That case is an appeal of a B.C. Court of Appeal ruling last year that found the Children’s Foundation liable for the sexual abuse committed by one of its employees in a group home it operated.

The outstanding claims against the Anglican Church are as follows:

• Thirty-seven claims at Gordon’s Residential School and 29 claims at the Key First Nation, both in the Diocese of Qu’Appelle;
• Two claims in separate actions at St. George’s Residential School in Lytton in the Diocese of Cariboo;
• One claim at the MacKay Residential School in Dauphin in the Diocese of Brandon;
• One claim at St. Michael’s Residential School in Alert Bay in the Diocese of B.C.;
• One claim at the Mohawk Institute in Brantford, Ont., in the Diocese of Huron; and
• One claim at the Prince Albert Residential School in the Diocese of Saskatchewan.