SAN DIEGO (CA)
The Times of San Diego

Sept. 24, 2019

By Irwin Zalkin

This fund was set up by six of the largest dioceses in California in anticipation of new legislation, Assembly Bill 218, which is currently on Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk for signature. AB 218, which was overwhelmingly passed by the Legislature, will open a three-year window for new civil claims that had been barred by California’s restrictive statue of limitations laws. This legislation would allow potentially hundreds, if not thousands, of clergy abuse victims to sue the Catholic dioceses of California for allowing the abuse to happen and for covering up decades of clergy abuse.

The last time such a window of opportunity was allowed in California was in 2003, when more than 1,000 victims filed lawsuits with an average settlement of $1.3 million. Offering to pay victims pennies on the dollar compared to what they…