Monetary Compensation

The noun "compensation" originally derives from the Latin word compensare, meaning "weighed against"[1]. Compensation is defined as a “payment awarded to someone in recognition of loss, suffering, or injury”[2]. Following the end of the Sixties Scoop and the abolishment of residential school systems, the Canadian government created compensation programs that aimed to reimburse those affected by the physical and psychological trauma following these tragedies.

Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement (IRSSA)

One of the most recognised programs created to address past injustices was the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement (IRSSA), implemented in September 2007 after discussions between victim representatives and members of the federal government[3]. The IRSSA consists of two financial compensation programs: the Common Experience Payment (CEP) and the Independent Assessment Process (IAP)[4].

The Common Experience Payment (CEP) is paid to “eligible former students who resided at a recognised Indian residential school” in Canada[5]. Following its enactment in 2007, the $1.9 billion program, described as a “lump-sum payment” quickly began receiving applicants[6]. It was agreed that each former student would receive “$10,000 for their first year of schooling, and $3,000 for each subsequent year”[7]. Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada (INAC) calculated that 98% of the 80,000 eligible former students received compensation, with $1.6 billion of the $1.9 billion approved for payment[8].

The Independent Assessment Process (IAP) was established alongside the CEP to address claims of sexual and physical abuse experienced by former students of Indian Residential Schools[9]. It was promoted as a non-adversarial and out-of-court process for victims with trauma to come forward in a safe and supportive environment to have their hearings in[10]. By January 31, 2014, “a total of 37,922 IAP applications were received alongside 20,000 hearings”. In total, $2.2 billion was paid out in compensation, legal fees, and disbursements[11].

During the establishment of the settlement, it was agreed that those who chose to be represented by private lawyers in court must pay out a 15% commission to their representatives[12]. However, this 15% was often exploited by lawyers who labelled their clients’ cases as “complex and time-consuming”. As a result, if proven eligible, the victims would only receive 70% of their final payout[13]. This problem left many disillusioned with the program, even though IRSSA’s statistics show that a very high percentage of claims were compensated. Compounding this complaint of financial exploitation, victims argued that the categorisation of Indigenous trauma through homogenous hearings and payments destroyed the individuality of each victim’s experience, who deserved to tell their own story and receive their own apology[14].

Sixties Scoop Settlement Agreement (SSSA)  

The Sixties Scoop Settlement Agreement (SSSA), established in November 2017[15], aimed to compensate all Inuit and First Nation children who were placed with non-Indigenous adoptive parents between 1951 and 1991[16]. This agreement consisted of multiple programs, with the most significant being the national and provincial compensation funds.

On the national level, the compensation fund, implemented shortly after the establishment of the settlement, agreed to pay eligible individuals $25,000–$50,000 each, depending on the harm suffered[17]. Victims only received their payment if their claims were administered by Collectiva, a firm responsible for verifying qualified survivors.[18] By August of 2019, 99% of the claims were reviewed, with 84% accepted[19]. An additional $75 million was allocated to survivors as coverage for legal fees. In contrast to the experience with the IRSSA compensation fund a decade earlier, this ensured that survivors were compensated the full amount without additional costs[20].

On the provincial level, compensation funds like Ontario’s June 2020 settlement addressed claims for survivors who lived in Ontario but did not receive compensation from the national fund. The program, established by the Law Society of Ontario, aimed to help clients who suffered financial losses due to lawyer dishonesty as a last resort. To prove eligibility, a claimant must demonstrate that they suffered financial loss due to dishonesty, made efforts to recover their losses directly from a lawyer, and that the lawyer or paralegal was officially licensed by the Law Society of Ontario at the time of the dishonest act[21].

Following the federal court’s approval of the compensation fund, the onset of COVID-19 caused unexpected delays that frustrated many survivors. As Colleen Hele-Cardinal, co-founder of the Sixties Scoop Foundation, noted, “We didn’t realise it would be almost four years later that we would get paid”. Thus, survivors were justifiably frustrated by these unexpected delays, which exacerbated their emotional and financial stress. Furthermore, critics felt that the outreach did not adequately reach all eligible survivors and that the burdens of proof required in the provincial funds, like Ontario’s, were too strict, leaving many without the support they needed[22].

While the Canadian government has made significant strides in compensating survivors of the Sixties Scoop and residential schools through programs like the IRSSA and SSSA, many challenges remain. The delays, legal exploitation, and burdensome requirements have left some survivors feeling that their experiences have not been fully acknowledged or addressed. As this blog series continues, we will explore non-monetary forms of compensation and their effectiveness.

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[1] James Morwood, The Pocket Oxford Latin Dictionary: Latin-English (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2012).

[2]Albert Sydney and Margaret Deuter, Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary of Current English (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2015).

[3] Tabitha de Bruin, “Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement | the Canadian Encyclopedia,” Thecanadianencyclopedia.ca, July 11, 2013.

[4] Indigenous and, “FAQ - Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement September 19, 2012, Deadlines - Canada.ca,” Canada.ca, 2024.

[5] Indigenous and, “FAQ - Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement September 19, 2012, Deadlines - Canada.ca,” Canada.ca, 2024.

[6] Government of Canada; Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada;, “Common Experience Payments,” rcaanc-cirnac.gc.ca, November 7, 2008.

[7] Tabitha de Bruin, “Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement | the Canadian Encyclopedia,” Thecanadianencyclopedia.ca, July 11, 2013.

[8] Government of Canada; Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada, “Statistics on the Implementation of the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement,” www.rcaanc-cirnac.gc.ca, September 6, 2011, 

[9] Indigenous and, “FAQ - Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement September 19, 2012, Deadlines - Canada.ca,” Canada.ca, 2024.

[10] le, “Publications | IAP Fact Sheets,” Iap-pei.ca, 2014.

[11] le, “Publications | IAP Fact Sheets,” Iap-pei.ca, 2014.

[12] Indigenous and, “FAQ - Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement September 19, 2012, Deadlines - Canada.ca,” Canada.ca, 2024.

[13] Indigenous and, “FAQ - Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement September 19, 2012, Deadlines - Canada.ca,” Canada.ca, 2024.

[14] Investigates, “APTN Investigates: Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement,” APTN News, June 19, 2017,

[15] Ka’nhehsí:io Deer, “Sixties Scoop Class Action Settlement to Move Forward after Delays,” CBC, February 2021.

[16] Ka’nhehsí:io Deer, “Sixties Scoop Class Action Settlement to Move Forward after Delays,” CBC, February 2021

[17] Government of Canada; Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada, “Are You Part of the Sixties Scoop Class Litigation?,” www.rcaanc-cirnac.gc.ca, December 1, 2018,

[18] Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada, “Claims Process Now Open for Sixties Scoop Survivors - Approved Settlement to Provide Compensation, Funding for Charitable Foundation,” www.canada.ca, December 1, 2018.

[19] Sixties Scoop Settlement, “Updates,” sixtiesscoopsettlement.info, December 12, 2023.

[20] Government of Canada; Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada, “Are You Part of the Sixties Scoop Class Litigation?,” www.rcaanc-cirnac.gc.ca, December 1, 2018

[21] Law Society of Ontario, “Compensation Fund | Law Society of Ontario,” Lso.ca, 2023,

[22] Patrick Johnston Originally published on Policy Options July 26 and 2016, “Revisiting the ‘Sixties Scoop’ of Indigenous Children,” Policy Options, July 26, 2016,