When it's Time to Get Help

Set Back for Ontario Sex Abuse Class Action

by John McKiggan

A class action lawsuit on behalf of former students of St. Andrew’s College in Ontario who say they were sexually abused has suffered a set back. Students who say they were sexually abused by former teacher John Bradley have filed a class action seeking compensation.

In a highly unusual move, the proposed lead plaintiff applied to the court for an order requesting immunity from costs. In other words, if the proposed class action is not certified , or if the claim is not successful at trial, the lead plaintiff does not want to be responsible for paying costs (legal fees) to the Defendants.

Under the Ontario Class Proceedings Act an award of costs is solely within the discretion of the court.

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Posted in: Child Abuse, Uncategorized

Mentally Ill Children Sexually Abused: New Brunswick Report

by John McKiggan

A young autistic man is sent to a mental institution where he is sexually abused. A 15-year-old boy with a long history of mental disorders is sent to a local jail and put in a holding cell where he is repeatedly sexually abused by a prison guard.

A “disturbing” new report on the treatment of children with severe mental illnesses in New Brunswick has uncovered sexual abuse and harsh treatment in several cases where troubled youths have been sent to jail.

Former provincial cabinet minister Bernard Richard is New Brunswick’s Child and Youth Advocate. He released a scathing report Monday uncovering serious flaws in New Brunswick’s treatment of mentally ill youth and calling for the end of “criminalization” of mental illness. The report suggests there are inadequate resources in place in the province to assist victims of mental illness.

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Posted in: Prison Abuse, Uncategorized

Supreme Court of Canada Denies Compensation for Abused Inmates Lost Income

by John McKiggan

A man who was sexually abused by a prison guard will not receive compensation for lost wages during subsequent imprisonments according to a report in the Halifax Chronicle Herald.

When he was 18 years old, Dean Zastowny was sexually abused by former prison guard and convicted sex abuser, Roderick MacDougall. MacDougall was described in the Statement of Claim as:

“…a sexual predator who singled out teenagers.”

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Posted in: Prison Abuse, Uncategorized

Time Limits for Filing Sexual Abuse Claims in UK

by John McKiggan

This article is a fascinating (at least to lawyers who represent survivors of sexual abuse) review of the development of the law in the U.K. regarding time limits for filing civil claims for compensation for sexual abuse.

Until recently, I would have said that Canada, and Nova Scotia in particular, had the most liberal time limits for filing civil claims for historical sexual abuse. Based on this article I believe that the U.K. may now have taken the lead in protecting the rights of survivors of childhood sexual absue.

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Posted in: Time Limits, Uncategorized

Bishop Threatened to Sue Diocese

by John McKiggan

The Roman Catholic Bishop of Vermont threatened to sue a catholic diocese in Indiana over sexual abuse by a priest, according to a report in The Burlington Free Press.

The story reports that Bishop Salvatore Matano threatened to sue Indiana’s Fort Wayne-South Bend diocese for failing to disclose information about prior sexual misconduct by Rev. Edward Paquette. The Diocese of Vermont subsequently paid $965,000.00 to a man that Paquette sexually abused in Vermont.

According to church documents filed with the court, the diocese had evidence that Paquette had molested boys in Massachusetts and then Indiana before being hired by the Vermont diocese in 1972.

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Posted in: Priest Abuse, Uncategorized

Colorado Considers Eliminating Time Limits for Sex Abuse Claims

by John McKiggan

A state legislator wants to eliminate the statute of limitations for sexual abuse lawsuits.

Rep. Gwyn Green (D-Golden) is sponsoring the “Children’s Protection Bill.” Based on the proposed law, a victim of sexual abuse would be able to sue an organization or an agency if it knew about the abuse and failed to take reasonable steps to prevent the perpetrator from committing the abuse.

In the landmark ruling of the Supreme Court of Canada in M.K. v. M.H. the court ruled that the time limit in historical sexual abuse claims did not start to run until the victim was reasonably capable of discovering the wrongful nature of the abuser’s acts and the nexus between those acts and the victim’s injuries.

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Posted in: Time Limits, Uncategorized

Former Premier Accused of Sexual Abuse Cover Up

by John McKiggan

The former premier of the Northwest Territories, Joe Handley, has been accused of covering up allegations of sexual abuse of Inuit students in isolated Arctic schools.

The Globe and Mail has reported that lawyer Geoffrey Budden represents 69 Inuit who say they were victims of convicted sex offender Ed Horne when they were between six and 17 years old. Mr. Horne was their teacher in the 1970s and 1980s.

Budden claims:

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Posted in: Child Abuse, Uncategorized

Irish Bishops Planned to Protect Church From Child Abuse Claims

by John McKiggan

The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Dublin circulated legal advice to every bishop in Ireland to help the dioceses negotiate insurance policies to protect them from child sex abuse claims.

The Irish paper, Independent has reported:

The legal advice, obtained on behalf of Cardinal Connell’s predecessor Archbishop Kevin McNamara, formed the basis for a dedicated clerical sex abuse insurance policy. Within two years, all dioceses in Ireland had insured themselves against abuse claims, despite later Church claims that they had no knowledge of the fact of, or extent of, errant priests.

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Posted in: Priest Abuse, Uncategorized
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