Residential School Deal Opt-Outs Said To Be Rare

Residential School Deal Opt-Outs Said To Be Rare

Tuesday, June 12, 2007 at 14:27

A lawyer familiar with the compensation settlement for residential school survivors says he isn’t worried the agreement will be ruined by some apparent confusion over paperwork.

Tony Merchant says he is aware some survivors are inadvertently filling out forms sent to them from Ottawa that essentially opt them out of the deal.

The government has said that if 5,000 survivors sign the forms, it could scuttle the agreement for everyone.

However, Merchant says he knows the number of survivors who have opted-out of the settlement — and he maintains it is an extremely small amount.

He says he can’t reveal the exact number, due to reasons of confidentiality.

But Merchant says he would be surprised if even 500 people opted out of the deal by the August deadline.