Key points from new wave of Catholic abuse lawsuits

Associated Press
December 2, 2019

https://apnews.com/388e5bba0e384173b6a636d2a5b5ff98

In this Nov. 20, 2019, photo, Nancy Holling-Lonnecker, 71, poses with a picture taken of her as a young girl, at her home in San Diego. Holling-Lonnecker plans to take advantage of an upcoming three-year window in California that allows people to make claims of sexual abuse no matter how old. Her claim dates back to the 1950s when she says a priest repeatedly raped her in a confession booth beginning when she was 7 years old. “The survivors coming forward now have been holding on to this horrific experience all of their lives,” she said. Photo by Gregory Bull

In this Tuesday, Oct. 29, 2019, photo, attorney Adam Slater, left, checks his phone during a working lunch with lawyers in his firm including partner Jonathan Schulman, second from left, Steven Alter, second from right, and Linc Leder, in Melville, N.Y. Slater said since New York state opened its one-year window allowing sex abuse suits with no statute of limitations, his firm has signed up nearly 300 new clients. Photo by Bebeto Matthews

15 states and the District of Columbia have extended or suspended statute of limitations to allow child sex abuse claims stretching back decades.

Key takeaways from Associated Press reporting showing that new laws in 15 states could clear the way for a deluge of lawsuits against the Roman Catholic Church:

— Many of the dozen-plus lawyers and clergy abuse watchdog groups interviewed by the AP expect at least 5,000 new cases, resulting in potential payouts that could surpass the $4 billion paid out since the clergy sex abuse first came to light in the 1980s.

— The legal onslaught will play out in some of the nation’s most populous Catholic strongholds. This summer, New York state opened its one-year window allowing sex abuse claims no matter how old, and already hundreds of lawsuits have been filed. A two-year window in New Jersey opens this week, then a three-year window in California opens in the new year that allows triple damages if the church tried to cover up the abuse.

— Some lawyers believe payouts by juries will be bigger than ever because of a recent national reawakening over sex abuse, fueled by the #MeToo movement, the public shaming of accused celebrities and last year’s Pennsylvania grand jury report that found 300 priests abused more than 1,000 children in that state. Since then, attorneys general in nearly 20 states have launched investigations of their own.

— The church is hoping victims turn to compensation funds set up by dioceses offering faster, but typically much lower payments than if they took their claims to court. To soften the financial hit, more dioceses are likely to file for bankruptcy, too. Less than a month after New York’s window took effect, the upstate Diocese of Rochester filed for bankruptcy, the 20th U.S. diocese or religious order to do so.