MINNESOTA
Minnesota Public Radio

Martin Moylan , Madeleine Baran St. Paul, Minn.

With three clergy abuse lawsuits nearing trial and concerns mounting over the cost of future claims, the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis on Friday filed for bankruptcy protection.

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The Chapter 11 filing buys the archdiocese time to reorganize its troubled finances as it faces huge potential costs tied to clergy sex abuse. Instead of handling claims through civil suits, alleged victims will likely need to file claims in federal court as creditors of the archdiocese.

The shift into bankruptcy court also stops the coming civil trials, which were set to begin Jan. 26.

The move allows the “finite resources” of the archdiocese to go equitably to clergy…