By William Crooks
Local Journalism Initiative
In a groundbreaking legal move, the Arsenault, Dufresne and Wee (ADW) law firm has launched a class action lawsuit against the Sherbrooke Archdiocese, holding it responsible for alleged sexual abuses spanning from the 1930s to the present. The lawsuit seeks to address systemic failures within the Archdiocese and obtain justice for over 75 claimants who allege abuse by clergy and church personnel. With the promise of anonymity and no requirement for a police report, ADW urges all affected individuals to step forward in a pivotal moment for accountability and historical redress.
“This class action suit is aimed at the Sherbrooke Archdiocese,” said ADW Lawyer Jérôme Aucoin, targeting the Archdiocese’s liability for the fault of its subordinates. The individual priests or volunteer workers that are allegedly at fault are not being pursued by Aucoin’s firm. “It is almost like going against the employer for the fault of the employees,” he explained, which is a principle recognized in civil law in Quebec.
The suit concerns alleged sexual abuses that took place from the 1930s to the present day. These were said to have been committed by priests, employees of the church or volunteers.
The ADW is also alleging that the Archdiocese “could not ignore” the many actions of their priests; their handling of the problem is also faulty, since, for instance, they did not work out a “politics or framework” to protect their parishioners.
More than 75 people have contacted his firm and detailed cases of sexual abuse, reporting that over 40 individuals, mostly priests, but also a volunteer worker and an organist, are involved. All the accused are francophone, or have French names, he noted.
The firm is looking for reparations from the Archdiocese, but also public recognition of wrongdoing. It is important for the members of the lawsuit that they be acknowledged as victims of abuse, for often they were either not believed or told not to speak about what they had undergone. The firm will ask for a letter of apology along with damages, both of symbolic significance, Aucoin said.
Aucoin views it as abnormal that no English-speaking Townshipper has come forward to join the suit. The region has an important Irish heritage, he continued; there is an English-speaking Catholic population. He wonders if “something is going on”.
His firm does not have the exact numbers or a percentage of the English Catholics in the Townships, but they do know where they are primarily located: Ayer’s Cliff, North Hatley and Melbourne.
It is important for people to know, Aucoin insisted, that everything anyone tells them and anyone’s participation in the suit is protected by complete anonymity. A judge of Quebec’s Superior Court has ordered that the names of those involved be “entirely withheld”. Participation is completely free, Aucoin added.
No police report has to be filed, and no criminal action against any alleged abuser will be taken as result of this civil lawsuit.
Those who participate will speak with the firm and make a deposition, and the firm will document the consequences the abuse had on their lives. Damages in civil law are calculated according to the severity of the consequences.
Aucoin hopes everyone affected will call in, for the more people that take part, the stronger the claim. We are living through a historical moment where the wrongdoings of the past can be corrected in court, Aucoin emphasized. He recognizes it is not easy to speak up, but it is very important to do so.
The ADW can be contacted, regarding this suit, by phone: 514-527-8903, or email: actioncollective@adwavocats.com