WASHINGTON
The Spokesman-Review
Kip Hill
The Spokesman-Review
Spokane Bishop Blase Cupich’s former top lieutenant told attorneys that Cupich has attempted a money grab against the law firm that guided the church through bankruptcy proceedings.
The allegations leveled by the Spokane Diocese against Paine Hamblen, the downtown Spokane firm that represented the church in bankruptcy proceedings sparked by multiple cases of priest sexual abuse, came seven years after a settlement designed to limit the diocese’s liability in future claims. In January, the diocese asked a federal judge to overturn an order to pay attorney fees to the firm.
The church also is asking for damages after several unexpected claims were lodged, exhausting a fund set up through the bankruptcy settlement to compensate victims through 2016.
In its response filed Monday in federal Bankruptcy Court, the law firm says Cupich’s lawsuit caused fractures among the diocese’s inner circle, many of whom disagreed with the decision to go after Paine Hamblen. Former Vicar General Steve Dublinski, who resigned in August after what he called “irreconcilable differences” with Cupich on several matters, said in a recorded interview with attorneys last month that Cupich told him the complaints against Paine Hamblen were a designed money-grab.
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