The We Survived Woodlands Group
The We Survived Woodlands Group (WSW) was formed in 2002 by survivors of Woodlands School and their families and advocates. Many of these family members and advocates had participated in the fight to have Woodlands School closed. Now they are part of the struggle to get justice and compensation for the abuse suffered by former residents.
In 2001, Ombudsman Dulcie McCallum informed the government in her report The Need to Know: Administrative Review of Woodlands School that physical and sexual abuse of Woodlands residents had occurred and that the abuse was systemic. She stressed that former residents should not be forced to go to court. Yet, the provincial government refuses to acknowledge that systemic abuse occurred at Woodlands School and Woodlands survivors have had to sue the government to gain compensation. Our class action suit has dragged on for more than two years already and the trial set for January 2008 is scheduled to last 27 weeks. With appeals, the process could stretch into 2010. This prolonged legal process is a hardship for many former residents who are elderly and living on very low incomes, as well as for the family members and advocates who must act on behalf of survivors who are unable to speak for themselves.
- [Ombudsman Dulcie McCallum] stressed that former residents should not be forced to go to court. Yet, the provincial government refuses to acknowledge that systemic abuse occurred at Woodlands School and Woodlands survivors have had to sue the government to gain compensation.
Many members of our class action retained David Klein, of Klein Lyons, as independent counsel because of our dissatisfaction with the representation we were getting from our class action counsel James Poyner of Poyner Baxter. He proposed a settlement with an inhumane point system model for compensation without consulting us. The system assigns a range of points for varying degrees of abuse. Woodlands survivors are adamantly opposed to being revictimized by being forced to relive and describe the abuse we suffered as children at the school.
In a hearing on June 7 and 8, 2007, Mr. Poyner asked the court to change the class definition so that former residents who left Woodlands before August 1, 1974 would be excluded from the class action. One of the many Woodlands survivors who would be excluded from the class action is Bill McArthur who is one of the two Representative Plaintiffs for the class. Bill McArthur is also a spokesperson for The We Survived Woodlands Group. Woodlands survivors are opposed to this division of survivors. Bill McArthur asked the court to remove Mr. Poyner and Poyner Baxter as counsel for the class action because they were acting contrary to our wishes and not in the best interests of the class. David Klein represented Bill McArthur at the hearing.
On July 25, we received the decision from the hearing and the very good news that Mr. Justice Butler had removed Mr. Poyner and Poyner Baxter as counsel for our class action. The members of We Survived Woodlands Group stood together as a solid group and we refused to be treated with disrespect, especially by our own lawyer.
- Bill McArthur asked the court to remove Mr. Poyner and Poyner Baxter as counsel for the class action because they were acting contrary to our wishes and not in the best interests of the class. David Klein represented Bill McArthur at the hearing.
We are now waiting to see what our next step will be. WSW has repeatedly urged the government to put an end to the lengthy court process and settle out of court. We propose a common experience settlement of $15,000 to each former resident of Woodlands. This would eliminate the need for survivors to relive the abuse suffered at the school. The funds for the common experience payment could be created by the government matching the $18 million it received for the sale of the Woodlands School lands with another $18 million. We say that everyone who was at Woodlands suffered and everyone should receive compensation.
- WSW has repeatedly urged the government to put an end to the lengthy court process and settle out of court. We propose a common experience settlement of $15,000 to each former resident of Woodlands.
WSW is asking the government to Do the Right Thing. This is the title of a paper written by The We survived Woodlands Group. Do the Right Thing has been endorsed by more than 150 community groups throughout the province.
