Frequently Asked Questions

• A class action is a type of civil lawsuit where one or more people who are called "representatives" take legal action on behalf of a larger group of people who have a similar problem. The parties who launch the lawsuit are called "plaintiffs." Together, these people form a "class" and are called "class members." The parties against whom the lawsuit is brought are called "defendants." A court will rule on the legal issues that affect all class members, except anyone who chooses to opt out.  
• Class actions settle common issues that affect everyone in the class (except those who opt out). All class members are bound by the court's ruling, even if they don't participate in the legal proceedings.

• The class actions launched by the plaintiffs seek compensation for class members following the privacy breach announced by Desjardins in June 2019.
• The law firms Siskinds Desmeules and Kugler Kandestin represent all class members in the class actions against Desjardins.
• The parties are pleased that a settlement agreement has been reached, approved by the court, and that the Desjardins members and clients affected will receive compensation.
• The compensation of the settlement paid by Desjardins does not constitute an admission of liability since the allegations made in the class actions were not proved before a court of law and are still contested by Desjardins.

• The Class Action includes all current and former Desjardins members and clients affected by the leak of personal information publicly disclosed by Desjardins on June 20, 2019.

• The class includes current and former Desjardins members and clients affected by the privacy breach publicly announced by Desjardins on June 20, 2019.
• The settlement agreement provides that class members may be eligible to receive:
  • Up to $18 per hour for a maximum of 5 hours for time spent taking certain eligible actions to deal with the privacy breach, and/or
  • Up to $1,000 for cases of identity theft, including the use or modification of your personal information to impersonate you without your knowledge to commit fraud.

• You can check the timeline on the home page for the full schedule.

• From July 21, 2022 to mid-October 2022, Explanatory Notices will be sent directly to a large number of Class members via AccèsD or by letter, to inform them of the steps to follow in order to file a claim.
• These notices will contain a hyperlink (for Notices sent by AccèsD) or unique reference number (for Notices sent by letter) intended for the member of the Class, allowing him to file his claim more easily.
• As such, Class members will be able to submit a claim as follow:
  • By accessing the Online Claims Portal using the Desjardins AccèsD link within the messaging board of their Desjardins Online Account.
  • By accessing the Online Claims Portal using the login credentials provided within the letter received from Desjardins.
  • By accessing the Online Claims Portal for members who did not receive a message on AccèsD or a Letter. The Online Claims Portal will be open to all members as of October 18, 2022. 

• To be eligible to obtain compensation under the Settlement, a Class Member must file a completed claim with the Claims Administrator. You can file a claim online by clicking HERE. It does not cost anything to file a claim.

• Class Members who satisfy the eligibility criteria set out in the Class Member definition (FAQ 3) and have filed a completed claim form on time may be entitled to benefits that are identified in the settlement agreement.

• Until all claims have been adjudicated it will not be possible to determine the exact value of the compensation that may be paid to eligible claimants.

• The deadlines are listed as follow:
  • Subclass 1 (loss of time): Deadline is April 20, 2023
  • Subclass 2 (identity theft): The deadline to submit a claim for year 1 is October 20, 2023, year 2 is October 20, 2024, and year 3 is October 20, 2025.
• Late claims shall not be considered by the Administrator.

• Sub-Class 1 LESS than 3 hours: No documentation is needed.

• Sub-Class 1 MORE than 3 hours: You will be required to provide description of all the compensable actions you have completed.

• Sub-Class 2: You will be required to provide documentary evidence confirming the Identity Theft. Additionally, if the Identity Theft is discovered after December 14, 2022, provide proof that you previously enrolled in a credit monitoring service offered by Equifax or TransUnion before this date.

• The Claims Administrator will indemnify Subclass 1 (loss of time) members who submit valid claims by cheque payable to the claimant or by Interac e-transfer, within 90 days following the end of the claims period for Subclass 1 members, therefore the payment to members would be before July 19, 2023.

• The Claims Administrator will indemnify Subclass 2 (identity theft) members who submit valid claims by cheque payable to the claimant or by Interac e-transfer, within 90 days following the end of the applicable claim year. Depending on when you have submitted your claim, the payment to members would be before January 18, 2024 for year 1, before January 18, 2025 for year 2, and before January 18, 2026 for year 3.

Details of how to make a claim will be published in select newspapers across Canada.

• The Online Claims Portal will be open to all members as of October 18, 2022.

• All available information will be posted on www.desjardinssettlement.com.

• If you wish to speak with someone, you should contact RicePoint, the court appointed Claims Administrator at 1-888-886-7164. Agents are available to answer your questions.

• No. You will not have to pay anything in connection with the settlement, Claims administration fees, legal fees and class counsels’ fees will be paid by Desjardins and will not impact the amount of compensation paid to class members.

• The law firms Siskinds Desmeules and Kugler Kandestin represent all class members in these class actions.

• You are not responsible for the lawyers’ fees. If you would like to be represented by your own lawyer, you will need to hire one at your own expense.

• Desjardins will pay all the legal fees and disbursements for class counsel. The fees and disbursements paid to class counsel will not be deducted from the amounts paid to class members. Desjardins will also cover all administration fees in connection with claims made under the settlement agreement.

• Unless you opted out, you remain in the class. That means you can't bring your own action or participate in another action against the defendants that addresses the same legal questions at issue in this lawsuit. It also means that the court's orders apply to you and are legally binding on you. The approved settlement releases the defendants from all claims brought against them by class members in these class actions.

• No. Unless you opted out, you are bound by the result of the class actions. Class members who remain in the class will not be able to bring lawsuits against Desjardins for claims covered in the class actions. You needed to opt out of the class actions to bring your own lawsuit.

• No. Only eligible class members can be part of the settlement and receive compensation.

• Yes. There is a proposed class action in British Columbia which is also based on the personal information breach announced by Desjardins in 2019: Matthew Wenman c. Desjardins Cabinet de services financiers inc. et al, Supreme Court of British Columbia, file no. VIC-S-S, 192723, District of Victoria. That proposed class action, filed on June 21, 2019, has not been certified as a class action. The release resulting from the settlement agreement covers persons and claims that are the object of the class action in British Columbia and the parties in Québec intend to collaborate to ensure the settlement agreement is enforced. If you opted out of the class actions filed in Québec, you may be included in the class action in British Columbia if and when it is certified as a class action and if you are part of the class that is certified. If you did not opt out of the class actions filed in Québec, you will not be included in the class action in British Columbia and you will have the opportunity of benefitting from the compensation under the settlement agreement.

• You can simply make a new claim without a unique reference number.

• Absolutely. You can make a claim without a unique reference number.
• However, if you did receive a unique reference number, we encourage you to use it to speed up the processing of your claim.