Class-action Lawsuit Alleges Sexual Abuse by Priests across Quebec

By Damien Meyer
Montreal Gazette
December 5, 2019

https://montrealgazette.com/news/local-news/class-action-lawsuit-alleges-sexual-abuse-by-priests-across-quebec

The Freres du Sacre-C?ur (FSC) will have to defend itself against a second class-action lawsuit in Quebec that claims its priests molested children in their care.

In a ruling published Thursday, Superior Court Judge Christian Immer wrote that claims of widespread abuse within the religious order were credible enough to warrant a class-action lawsuit. The suit names 26 FSC schools across Quebec and names 25 priests suspected of sexually assaulting children between the 1940s and 1980s.

One of the main plaintiffs — given the alias “F” in the lawsuit — claims that, as a teenager, he was repeatedly abused by Brother Leon Maurice Tremblay while attending an FSC summer camp. This would have taken place in 1978 or 1979.

This led to a lifetime of pain, suffering, drug and alcohol abuse as well as a total loss of confidence by the plaintiff, according to the lawsuit.

Brother Tremblay died two years ago.

F is seeking $950,000 in damages, and lawyers for the plaintiffs want FSC to pay $15 million for victims affected by the alleged rampant abuse within the religious order’s schools and day camps.

Victims involved in the class action come from schools in Verdun, LaSalle, Sherbrooke, Drummondville, Vaudreuil, Rosemere and Chertsey, among others.

Lawyers for the plaintiffs say the claims of abuse heard so far could only be the tip of the iceberg.

Two years ago, lawyers representing victims of an FSC school in Granby launched a class action against the order. But while preparing for court, they found they were inundated by calls from former students across the province.

That’s why they decided, in early 2019, to request a second, larger lawsuit against the religious order.