A controversial $148 million settlement offer in the Diocese of Rochester, along with recent deals of $87.5 million and $121.5 million, respectively, in bankruptcy cases in the Diocese of Camden, N.J., and Archdiocese of Sante Fe, N.M., give glimpses into where mediated negotiations might be heading for the Buffalo Diocese, its parishes and schools and more than 900 people who have filed sex abuse claims with a federal court, the Buffalo News reported. Nearly 2½ years after a flood of Child Victims Act lawsuits prompted the Buffalo Diocese to file for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, attorneys indicated this week that they are still at least several months from being able to reach a deal compensating abuse victims. “By no means can I say the case is going to settle, but I think we are literally getting into the meat of it, so to speak,” lead diocese bankruptcy attorney Stephen A. Donato told a federal judge this week. Donato said that it will take an “absolute minimum of four to five months” to have a clearer picture of whether mediated negotiations ordered by Chief Judge Carl L. Bucki of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in the Western District of New York in February will yield results. The diocese has met twice in person to negotiate with a creditors committee that represents abuse victims. “We are still at the initial stages where I think we’re all optimistic that we’ll make further progress,” said Ilan D. Scharf, lead attorney for the creditors committee.
