The Archdiocese of Milwaukee and its insurance companies may be poised for a settlement that could fast-track a resolution of its nearly three-year-old bankruptcy, but lawyers for sex-abuse victims with claims against the church are objecting, saying that any settlement talks must include victim-survivors, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported on Saturday. The archdiocese has asked U.S. District Judge Rudolph T. Randa to stay its lawsuit against Stonewall Insurance Co. and other carriers for 60 days so that the parties can enter mediation, a move that would presumably also put on hold Randa's pending decision on whether the insurers are liable for sex-abuse claims against the archdiocese. Attorneys for victims oppose the stay, saying that a definitive decision from Judge Randa on the insurance question is needed to move the case forward. There also is a concern that without the creditors' participation, the archdiocese and its insurers could agree on an unreasonably low figure, although the creditors would have an opportunity to object.
