Archdiocese of Milwaukee has filed a new round of motions in its bankruptcy case in an effort to throw out certain claims filed by individuals who say they were molested as children by clergy or others associated with the archdiocese.
The motions were filed in U.S. Bankruptcy Court court this week. The legal basis for the objections are not known because the motions themselves are sealed under a broad court order that requires attorneys to file anything that mentions the names of victims under seal.
Decisions in favor of the archdiocese could result in the dismissal of the vast majority of claims filed by sex abuse survivors.
Read more: http://www.jsonline.com/blogs/news/149128065.html
SNAP’s analysis of the situation:
April 26, 2012
Archdiocese will again try to throw out clergy abuse victims’ claims from bankruptcy court
Move part of a new, aggressive national legal attack by American bishops to target clergy victims
Statement by John Pilmaier, SNAP Wisconsin Director
CONTACT: 414.336.8575
In more unmistakable evidence that the Archdiocese of Milwaukee is leading an unprecedented and aggressive legal attack on clergy sex abuse victims, lawyers for Archbishop Jerome Listecki this week have filed yet another motion in Milwaukee Federal Bankruptcy Court seeking to toss out the majority of claims filed by 570 victims of clergy sexual assault. Listecki’s actions are in line with a new national strategy by the U.S. Catholic Bishops to aggressively fight victims of clergy abuse.
The Milwaukee archdiocese became the eighth Catholic diocese in the U.S. to seek Federal Bankruptcy protection. In no other church bankruptcy has a bishop sought to challenge the legitimate claims of victims of childhood rape and abuse. Listecki acknowledges that he intends to object to claims even in cases where the reported sexual assault is not in dispute by the archdiocese.
This is more strong evidence of a new national legal strategy to attack victims which is being orchestrated at the highest levels of the U.S. Catholic hierarchy. The New York Times reported last month that a source close to the bishops has indicated that there is indeed a new national strategy to aggressively go after victims of clergy sexual abuse and those organizations who advocate for them.
Listecki put the archdiocese into bankruptcy in January of 2011, repeatedly and publically insisting that such a move would “resolve” the sex abuse crisis, openly inviting every individual sexually assaulted by a cleric or employee of the archdiocese to come forward to file a claim. If they would do so, the archbishop promised, each legitimate claimant would be treated with respect and provided the opportunity for restitution.
As soon as the filing date closed in February 2012, however, Listecki ordered his lawyers—now 28 in number—to file a flurry of motions to dismiss, based on a variety of legal technicalities, what would amount to over 90 percent of the claims. He’s back at it again, this time seeking to bar even more victims from seeking restitution.
None of the other seven diocesan bankruptcies in the United States have challenged victim claims. Clearly, the archdiocese and the bishops would rather pay lawyers than provide restitution to victims. These policies, along with other legal tactics now being deployed by the American bishops, are clear evidence that church officials have collectively decided to play hardball with victims, whose lives were shattered because of the church’s own criminal wrongdoing.
SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, is the world’s oldest and largest support group for clergy abuse victims. We’ve been around for 23 years and have more than 10,000 members. Despite the word “priest” in our title, we have members who were molested by religious figures of all denominations, including nuns, rabbis, bishops, and Protestant ministers. Our website is SNAPnetwork.org.
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