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Royal Winnipeg Ballet Class Action Settlement Overview:
- Who: Royal Winnipeg Ballet (RWB) students who had nude and/or sexual photos taken of them may be eligible for compensation from a $10 million class action settlement.
- Why: A judge has approved the class action settlement, which will resolve allegations that former RWB photographer and instructor Bruce Monk took sexual photos of students.
- Where: The RWB nude photos settlement was approved by an Ontario Superior Court judge.
On Feb. 11, an Ontario Superior Court judge approved a $10 million class action settlement that will resolve allegations against the Royal Winnipeg Ballet (RWB)and a photographer accused of taking sexual photos of students.
The RWB agreed to settle the nude photos class action lawsuit in January 2022.
Former RWB photographer Bruce Monk was a photographer and instructor at the ballet company’s school from 1984 to 2015. He reportedly took nude and sexual photographs of young women and teenagers who were students, some of which were allegedly posted online.
He was fired in 2015 after the allegations surfaced.
RWB Class Action Asserts Photographer Abused Position of Trust, Power
In 2016, a class action lawsuit was launched against Monk and the RWB The plaintiffs claim RWB failed to protect students and breached their fiduciary obligations to the students.
The RWB class action lawsuit did not assert criminal charges against Monk; instead, it alleged that Monk abused his position of power and trust.
Dozens of former students may be eligible for compensation from the RWB class action settlement.
Last month, a lawyer representing the former students said that 50 to 70 former students had been identified as having nude, seminude or sexualized photos taken of them. However, there could be more students yet to be identified.
The total amount of compensation each class member receives will depend on several factors, including the total number of claimants, the seriousness of the impact and whether their photos were published or posted online.
Details about how to file a claim for the RWB settlement were not immediately available.
“There’s a lot of us that suffered and continue to suffer,” lead plaintiff Sarah Doucet told CBC News in January. “But … I’m really relieved. I think that this is hopefully going to give permission to a lot of women to finally tackle this and be able to get some closure and feel OK.”
RWB Says It Has Made Significant Changes to Prevent Abuse
After the judge approved the RWB nude photos settlement, the ballet company published an apology to those affected by Monk’s conduct.
“We acknowledge that these photography sessions were traumatizing for many students,” the RWB said. “The Royal Winnipeg Ballet is deeply sorry and regrets that the class members, all of whom were talented and vulnerable young people, were not protected as they should have been.”
The RWB says that it has made substantial changes to prevent abuse from happening in the future. For example, the ballet company says it established a School Crisis Management Team and restructured the School Advisory Committee.
The RWB also says it has sought input from the Canadian Centre for Child Protection and developed its own Child Protection Policy and Procedures Manual, which will be reviewed and updated regularly.
What are your thoughts on the RWB class action settlement? Join the discussion in the comments below!
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