RVC Diocese Sex Abuse Cases: Judge Allows Lawsuits Against Parishes

ROCKVILLE CENTRE, NY — Identified survivors of child sexual abuse now will be able to pursue their lawsuits in court against parishes, after their claims against the Diocese of Rockville Centre remained frozen for two years.

New York Bankruptcy Judge Martin Glenn issued an order in June, denying the diocese the ability to freeze claims that list its parishes, about one month after a two-day evidentiary hearing in June.

The diocese filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Oct. 1, 2020 after it received hundreds of sex abuse cases filed against it through the Child Victims Act.

More than two years later, at least 334 plaintiffs who claimed they were sexually abused by a Diocese employee as a child, are still awaiting settlements, as the status of their cases remain idle.

Jim Stang, founding partner of Pachulski Stang Ziehl and Jones, who represents the Committee of Survivors of the Catholic Diocese of Rockville Centre, told Patch that about 610 lawsuits have been filed.

Every plaintiff who filed a claim lists the diocese as their first defendant, and a parish and/or affiliate as a second defendant.

Stang explained that parishes are under the managerial order of the diocese, they are also their own separate entities. When the diocese filed for bankruptcy, its liability insurance ensured that all lawsuits against it would automatically be placed on a "stay" order.

However, the parishes themselves did not file for bankruptcy, yet their claims are also on a temporary "stay" order, Stang said. The parishes themselves are not in bankruptcy.

In June, the diocese requested the judge to allow parishes to renew its stay orders.

But Judge Glenn acknowledged "the harm" the diocese caused survivors by "delaying their rights", or freezing the claims, and entered the order on June 9.

The order allowed for a two-week appeal period, allowing anyone to argue against the order. No appeals were filed, and the window ended on June 23.

Attempted Negotiations

At the beginning of this year, the Committee of Survivors presented a settlement negotiation for the diocese and its lawsuits, which the diocese counteracted.

"We've been in lots of mediations," said Stang about Jones Day, the firm that represents the diocese. "We came to our wits end. We simply could not reach an agreement with the diocese and the parishes, and we have not."

Stang said that the committee then refused to settle unless the diocese "released" the parishes from its bankruptcy holding for about 225 cases that would not have an effect on the liability insurance.

The survivors will not settle unless the parishes are released from the bankruptcy flings, he said.

"We focused those lawsuits that we felt, from an insurance perspective, were not harmful to the diocese," he said.

A representative for the diocese shared the following statement with Patch:

"As it has throughout the Chapter 11 process, the Diocese will continue to seek and work toward a global settlement of all claims that fairly compensates survivors and allows the Diocese and parishes to continue their missions."

Moving Forward

It will take some time before anyone actually gets to a jury, Stan said. But if no overall settlement occurs, its possible survivors will take their cases to trial against parishes.

More than two dozen U.S. dioceses, including two in U.S. overseas territories, have entered into bankruptcy proceedings, the vast majority in the past decade, according to the Catholic News Agency. Of those dioceses, 11 are in the midst of the proceedings as of February 2023, while 15 have completed the process.

In addition to the Committee of Survivors of the Diocese of Rockville Centre, Stang also represents the committee of the Diocese of Buffalo, Dioceses of Rochester, the Archdiocese of New Orleans and the Boys and Girls Club in Manhattan called the Madison Square Boys and Girls Club.

Of the three dioceses, the Diocese of Rockville Centre is the wealthiest, Stang said.

"They characterize themselves as financially distressed," he said. "We don't share that opinion."

The diocese's intimidation tactics, such as demanding that survivors not be able to file their suits anonymously, is "pretty unique" in his 30-year career, Stang said.

Stang said that the judge's order to release the parishes is a victory for survivors.

“We applaud Judge Glenn’s ruling and his recognition of the plight of the real victims in this case, the Survivors," said Stang in a statement. "Committee Counsel, and others representing the Survivors in this case, will do whatever it takes to expediently achieve justice.”