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On June 15, 2023, the Superior Court of Quebec certified the class action against the defendant Attorney General of Canada and appointed Quebec Native Women as representative plaintiff of the class and Isabelle Paillé as designated member.

You are automatically included in the class action if you fall into one of the categories described below (A, B or C). If you wish to remain in the class, you do not need to take any action.

However, if you wish to opt-out of the class action, you must complete the exclusion form below and send it to the Registry of the Superior Court of Quebec before September 13, 2023.

The notice to class members and the exclusion form are available here:

Long form notice  Short form notice  Exclusion form

No trial date has been set and no compensation amount has been granted.

Are you a member?

You might be a member of this class action if you fit into one of these categories:

A. The grandchildren of an Indian woman who lost her status through marriage, provided that they were born before April 17, 1985 or of a marriage entered into before that date, as well as their direct descendants:

1. Any individual in Canada:

a) Whose grandmother lost her Indian status as a result of her marriage to a non-Indian man before April 17, 1985;

and

b) Whose only Indian parent was eligible for Indian status under s. 6(1)c.1) of the Indian Act, as amended in 2010 (Gender Equity in Indian Registration Act S.C. 2010, c. 18);

and

c) Who was himself/herself eligible for Indian status under s. 6(1)c.2) of the Indian Act, as amended in 2017 (An Act to amend the Indian Act in response to the Superior Court of Quebec decision in Descheneaux c. Canada (Procureur général), S.C. 2017, c. 25);

and

d) who had a child who was ineligible for Indian status prior to the coming into force of the Indian Act as amended in 2017;

2. As well as his or her registered Indian ancestors;

3. as well as his or her direct descendants who are themselves eligible for Indian status as a result of the 2017 amendments to the Indian Act.

B. Women born out of wedlock to an Indian man and a non-Indian woman and their direct descendants:

1. Any woman in Canada:

a) who was born out of wedlock to an Indian man and a non-Indian woman before April 17, 1985;

and

b) who became eligible for Indian status under s. 6(2) of the Indian Act as a result of the 1985 amendments to that Act;

and

c) who was eligible for Indian status under s. 6(1)(c. 3) of the Indian Act, as amended in 2017;

2. as well as her registered Indian ancestors;

3. as well as any of her direct descendants who are themselves eligible for Indian status as a result of the 2017 amendments to the Indian Act.

C. Enfranchised minors and their direct descendants:

1. Any individual in Canada:

a) whose father is Indian or unstated on the birth certificate and whose mother lost her Indian status as a result of her marriage to a non-Indian before April 17, 1985;

and

b) who lost Indian status as a result of his or her mother’s marriage to a non-Indian after the individual’s birth and before he or she reached the age of majority;

and

c) who regained his or her status under s. 6(1)(c) of the Indian Act, following the 1985 amendments to that Act;

2. as well as his or her registered Indian ancestors;

3. as well as his or her first-degree direct descendants who are themselves eligible for Indian status under s. 6(1)(c. 01) of the Indian Act as amended in 2017, or his or her other direct lineal descendants who are eligible as a result of the amendments to the Indian Act adopted in 2017.