The Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis has asked a federal bankruptcy court to extend its deadline for filing a reorganization plan to Nov. 30, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported on Saturday. The Bankruptcy Code gives the archdiocese exclusive rights to propose a reorganization plan within 120 days of petitioning for chapter 11 bankruptcy, which it did on Jan. 16. The court can extend that “exclusivity period” for good cause. The archdiocese argued that it needed more time to work with insurance carriers to determine liability. It entered into mediation with the carriers, abuse victim creditors and other creditors shortly after filing for Chapter 11. The bankruptcy came in response to an unprecedented wave of clergy abuse lawsuits filed since 2013.
