Proposed Settlement

On December 31, 2021, the Assembly of First Nations (AFN) and the Government of Canada and other parties, including the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society, reached two historic agreements:

• Long-term reform of the First Nations Child and Family Services (FNCFS) Program
• Improper implementation of Jordan’s Principle

The Government of Canada has agreed to pay $20 billion in compensation to children removed from their homes on-reserve and in the Yukon from April 1, 1991, to March 2022, as well as to caregivers. Another $20 billion will be dedicated to the long-term reform of the First Nations child and family services program.

It was also agreed that children who were denied essential services and other support they needed or received after delay because the Government of Canada failed to meet these essential services needs would be compensated. Some of the caregivers (caregiving parents or grandparents, for example) of these children may also be compensated.

View the Settlement Agreement >

This agreement followed a complaint filed by the AFN and the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society in February 2007 under the Canadian Human Rights Act stating that the Government of Canada was discriminating against First Nations Children and families by underfunding the First Nations Child and Family Services Program on-reserve and in the Yukon, and by applying a narrow interpretation of Jordan’s principle.

The Settlement Agreement is not yet final, and the claims process is not open. It will be reviewed by the Federal Court at a hearing scheduled for September 19 to 23, 2022.