NEWARK (NJ)
NorthJersey.com [Woodland Park NJ]
April 24, 2026
By Ted Sherman
He told the Pope he had been sexually abused and said he was met with silence.
For years he was a public face to what had happened to so many others, bearing witness as a victim in what had long been a dark secret within the Catholic Church.
And finally, he went to court.
Decades after James Grein was brought to the Vatican in 1988 by then-Archbishop Theodore E. McCarrick to meet Pope John Paul II, where he said he quietly disclosed that McCarrick had been sexually abusing him since he was a young boy — and years after he went public with his accusations — his attorney on Thursday announced that a settlement had been reached with the Diocese of Metuchen and the Archdiocese of Newark to resolve a lawsuit that has been playing out in the New Jersey courts since 2018.
The attorney, Mitchell Garabedian, would not disclose the amount of the settlement, other than to describe it as being “in the high six figures.”
Similar lawsuits filed in New York Supreme Court, where Grein accused the Archdiocese of New York of gross negligence for its failure to protect him from McCarrick for so many years, remain active.
“Cardinal McCarrick was the epitome of power and influence in the Catholic Church,” said Garabedian in a press conference. “He hobnobbed with powerful presidents; powerful world leaders.”
But Garabedian said the late cleric used that power and influence to sexually abuse children and adults.
“He ruined lives,” the lawyer charged, calling the long-fought litigation that ended this month before trial with a filed stipulation of dismissal, following mediation, a “painful process” for his client.
McCarrick, the former Newark archbishop and cardinal who was cast out of the ministry after sexual abuse allegations involving other young men and boys came to light, never admitted to the abuse, but accepted his punishment. He died last year at the age of 94.
In a statement, the Archdiocese of Newark said it recognized the seriousness of allegations of sexual abuse and the lasting harm such conduct can cause.
“We express our deep sorrow for the pain endured by survivors and their families, and we commend the courage of those who come forward to share their experiences,” the archdiocese said. “The resolution of this matter reflects a mutual agreement to avoid prolonged litigation and to allow all parties to move forward.”
It added that while it does not comment on the specifics of settled claims, “we remain steadfast in our commitment to accountability, transparency, and the protection of those entrusted to our care.”
The Diocese of Metuchen did not respond to a request for comment.
Meeting the Pope
Grein, now 67, grew up in New Jersey and has spoken candidly of the trauma he experienced, which led to alcohol and drugs and thoughts of suicide. He claimed in his court filings that McCarrick — a close family friend — had repeatedly exposed himself to him when he was 11 and then sexually molested him for years thereafter from 1982 to about 2000.
In his lawsuit, he said he had met the pope when McCarrick, then the most recognized Catholic leader in New Jersey as Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Newark and a leading voice on national issues for the church, introduced Grein to the pontiff and left the room.
Grein said he told the pope that McCarrick had been sexually abusing him since he was a child.
“At that time, no action by the Catholic Church was taken against Archbishop McCarrick,” his lawsuit would later allege. The court filing also alleged that no effort was made “to mitigate or otherwise address the impact it had on his life.”
In a statement released by his attorney, Grein said that settling the civil cases in New Jersey “represents an important and prayerful step in my continuing pursuit of healing and truth. Today, my peace rests with God. I remain profoundly grateful for His enduring presence and for the compassion, understanding, and support shown by so many throughout this journey.”
Before leading the Archdiocese of Newark, McCarrick had been a priest in the Archdiocese of New York and later bishop of the Diocese of Metuchen. After his tenure in Newark, he became the Archbishop of Washington, D.C.
But in 2018, he was abruptly removed from public ministry after accusations surfaced and were deemed “credible and substantiated” by church officials that he had abused a teenager 50 years ago while working as a priest in New York. At the same time, the Archdiocese of Newark separately revealed for the first time that McCarrick had previously been accused of sexual misconduct with three adults during his tenure in New Jersey, with two of those cases resulting in secret legal settlements.
The scandal, amplified by Grein’s public accusations, led to a wider reckoning within the Church that continues to unfold in ongoing court cases today involving other priests once seen as respected figures in the Catholic Church.
Those lawsuits were made possible by legislation in New York, New Jersey and elsewhere across the country which greatly expanded the statute of limitations, giving victims who suffered abuse a second chance to bring their cases to court.
The flood of claims saddled many U.S. Catholic dioceses and religious orders with substantial debt, forcing dozens to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy since 2004. They included the Camden Diocese in New Jersey, which sought bankruptcy protection in 2020.
In February, the Camden Diocese, its insurers, and the committee representing victims announced a proposed $180 million settlement to resolve claims by hundreds of people who suffered sexual abuse over the years at the hands of the clergy when they were young.
Other cases have gone to trial, including a lawsuit brought by a former student of the Delbarton School who claimed he was sexually assaulted more than 40 years ago by one of the Benedictine monks who operate the Catholic boys prep school. He was awarded $5 million in compensatory damages in October.
Attorneys for that victim, identified by his initials only, told jurors that Delbarton had failed its mission by tolerating and ignoring a culture of sexual abuse that was clearly evident as far back as 1954.
Garabedian said a civil lawsuit brought by Grein in New York against the Archdiocese of New York and Church of the Blessed Sacrament, and a separate lawsuit against the Archdiocese of New York, will continue in New York state court. One was filed in 2019 and the other in 2023. Both involve additional allegations of sexual abuse of Grein by McCarrick — one as a child and the other as an adult.
He added that “For the sake of accountability, healing, and validation, Pope Leo XIV should have each archdiocese and diocese worldwide” publicly release any secret files or archives held by the church containing allegations of sexual abuse and any cover up.