MILWAUKEE (WI)
National Catholic Reporter
Marie Rohde | Aug. 5, 2015
MILWAUKEE
The Milwaukee archdiocese has put forth what it hopes is the final settlement plan that will end the church’s nearly 5-year-old bankruptcy case, but victims of childhood sex abuse who filed claims against the archdiocese said they are stunned by the latest proposal. They allege that the $21 million allocated to victims is much smaller than that awarded in other bankruptcies and that it pits victim against victim.
Only sketchy details of the plan have been released in early August. The full plan is to be filed with the bankruptcy court by Aug. 24. The claimants will vote on the plan by Nov. 6 and a court hearing for its approval is set for Nov. 9.
The plan emerged during a three-day mediation “a few weeks ago in July,” according to a statement by Archbishop Jerome Listecki. It was the fourth attempt to reach a mediated agreement and the only one done secretly.
According to a statement by the archdiocese, the plan sets aside $21 million to compensate 330 victims. However, as much as $7 million of that will go to lawyers who have been working on behalf of the victims without pay for more than a decade, according to a lawyer for some claimants.
Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.