WASHINGTON
Yakima Herald-Republic
AP
SPOKANE, Wash. — The Catholic Diocese of Spokane can take its legal malpractice claim to trial against a law firm that handled its 2007 bankruptcy over priest sex abuse claims, a federal bankruptcy judge ruled.
The decision on Wednesday means former Spokane bishop Blase Cupich, who now serves as archbishop of Chicago, will likely have to testify in February about his decision to seek $3.6 million in legal fees from the Paine Hamblen law firm.
“I have every reasonable expectation that he will testify,” said Robert Gould, who is representing the diocese in the bankruptcy proceedings, The Spokesman-Review reported.
Cupich contends that Paine Hamblen lawyers underestimated how many victims would come forward with sex abuse claims after the bankruptcy was first resolved.
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.