The Roman Catholic Diocese of Rochester, N.Y., on Friday objected to nearly 100 claims filed by sexual-abuse survivors in its ongoing chapter 11 bankruptcy, a move that could shave tens of millions off any payout it makes in the case, the Rochester Beacon reported. The objections come late in the nearly three-year-old case and long after the claims were first filed. They also come as tensions between survivors and the diocese build as both sides joust over a settlement offer that survivors scorn as too little, too late. In the offer, the diocese proposes to pay survivors a total of $145.75 million, with its insurance carriers covering $105 million of that amount. Scorning the claim objections as raised on legal technicalities and a contradiction of Rochester Diocese Bishop Salvatore Matano’s professed concern for survivors, an attorney representing survivors in the case vowed to vigorously fight the objections. Such objections in diocesan bankruptcies are “unheard of and a pretty big deal in my opinion,” said Leander James, an attorney representing 76 abuse survivors in the Rochester Diocese bankruptcy. In a statement, the diocese says that it does not question the veracity of survivors’ claims but maintains that it is not responsible for acts committed by parties not legally tied to the diocese, and thus needs to object to the claims as part of its “fiduciary responsibility.” As of July 22, the diocese had filed 97 claim objections. If all were to be disallowed, it would reduce the diocese payout by as much as $30 million.
