N.S. Supreme Court approves $36M settlement in deaf schools class action case

The School for the Deaf in Halifax closed in 1961.

The Nova Scotia Supreme Court has approved a $36.23-million settlement for students who suffered alleged abuse at the former School for the Deaf in Halifax and the Interprovincial School for the Education of the Deaf in Amherst.

The settlement, which could impact up to 1,200 class members, brings a near decade-long case to a close. Wagners Law Firm originally filed the lawsuit in 2016, alleging “negligence and breach of fiduciary duty” by the Attorney General and the Atlantic Provinces Special Education Authority.

Those two defendants will pay a total of $41,765,702, along with legal fees and expenses. Students who attended the schools between 1913 and 1995, and who have not opted out of the class proceeding, will be eligible for $36,235,702 in direct compensation.

Three-million-dollars will fund relevant support services while $2.5 million will cover the costs of administering the settlement. The defendants have also agreed to issue a public apology.

“Nothing can make up for the losses we experienced, including in the education we received, and this has been a long ten years, but it was worth the wait,” said representative plaintiff Mike Perrier in a news release from Wagners.

Wagners aid the claims process will begin in mid-March 2026. Eligible class members can apply for compensation for “harmful experiences” or for physical or sexual abuse suffered at the schools.

“It has been our true privilege to represent these clients, many of whom we’ve come to know well over the years. We got here because of their strong resolve to seek accountability for what happened to them, and their advocacy on behalf of future generations of Deaf and hard of hearing children,” said Maddy Carter, one of the lawyers representing the class, in the release.

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