Montreal to pay $3M to Maple Spring protesters who were illegally arrested

The City of Montreal will pay more than $3 million to hundreds of protesters whose rights were violated by city police.

The settlement will end eight long-running class action lawsuits against the city that allege participants in six protests were illegally arrested or detained by police and were unable to exercise other fundamental rights.

The law firm representing class members said earlier this week in a court-approved notice that the city will also publish an apology on its website acknowledging that "certain actions" by city police and the municipal administration violated protesters' fundamental rights.

The protests, which took place between June 2012 and March 2014, included marches against police brutality and a city bylaw limiting protests, as well as a demonstration on the one-year anniversary of the beginning of student protests against tuition increases.

The settlement still needs to be approved by Quebec Superior Court. A hearing has been scheduled for Dec. 21.

The City of Montreal has agreed to pay a total of $6 million to settle the eight lawsuits as well as eight other similar class actions.