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Partial settlement of the class action against the City of Montreal for failure to have detainees appear in court within 24 hours of their arrest

We are pleased to announce that a partial settlement of the class action lawsuit against the Attorney General of Quebec, the City of Montreal and the City of Quebec has been reached. The partial settlement concerns only the City of Montreal, for the benefit of persons who were arrested and detained for a period of more than 24 consecutive hours without appearing in the Municipal Court of Montreal, while the courts were not in session.

Under the partial settlement, the City of Montreal will pay a global amount of $4,300,000 to be distributed to class members who are eligible under the settlement agreement during the period from December 15, 2017, to March 20, 2020.

The class action continues against the Attorney General of Quebec on behalf of all class members. The class action has already been settled with Quebec City.

As is required by law, in order for a class action settlement to be valid, it must be approved by the Court. On November 17, 2023, at 10 a.m., a hearing will be held by videoconference before the Superior Court of Québec during which class counsel will present an application for approval of the settlement agreement and class counsel fees.

You may wish to review the following documents to understand the terms of the settlement and its benefits to class members:

Application for Approval

Partial Settlement Agreement

Notice to Members (pages 3 & 4)

Amended Class Action Lawsuit

If the Superior Court of Québec approves the partial settlement, we will communicate additional information regarding the next steps.

You can view the Notice informing class members of the hearing of the application for approval and how to attend virtually. Please note that class members do not have to attend the hearing in order to benefit from the settlement.

If you or someone you know is a member of the class, you can contact class counsel: