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Abuse victims say that the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans is seeking bankruptcy protection to gain a “tactical advantage” in pending litigation. That’s according to a petition submitted on Friday in federal court asking a judge to dismiss the church’s chapter 11 filing, WDSU.com reported. The victims are represented in the bankruptcy as a group called the Unsecured Creditors Committee. Its request for a ”bad faith” dismissal asks Bankruptcy Judge Meredith Grabill to consider whether the archdiocese legitimately needed to reorganize its finances or was trying to gain an advantage in the lawsuits it faces from abuse victims. The archdiocese has asked the court to set a Sept. 29 for any additional abuse victims to come forward. Attorneys for victims say they intend to oppose that move in court. In Friday’s dismissal request, the unsecured creditors' committee points out the archdiocese has repeatedly said it’s solvent. It claimed $200 million in personal property assets when it filed for bankruptcy earlier this year, according to the filing. The archdiocese issued a statement that “the Archdiocese of New Orleans has publicly stated the underlying concerns which led to the decision to file chapter 11 reorganization. The archdiocese will address the factual and legal inaccuracies in the UCC’s Motion to Dismiss at the appropriate time with the Bankruptcy Court.”

In record time, the Fifth Circuit granted a direct appeal and reversed the bankruptcy court on June 22, ruling that the Small Business Act bars the bankruptcy court from entering an injunction that requires the Small Business Administration to grant a so-called PPP loan to a company in bankruptcy, according to today's RDW column by ABI Editor-at-Large Bill Rochelle. On April 25, a bankruptcy court in Houston preliminarily enjoined the SBA from barring the chapter 11 debtor from receiving a loan under the Paycheck Protection Program, or PPP. Enacted on March 27 as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act, the PPP program allows the SBA to make loans that will be forgiven if at least 60% is spent for payroll. The SBA appealed. The district court stayed the preliminary injunction pending appeal and certified the case for direct appeal. The Fifth Circuit accepted the appeal and accelerated briefing. The last brief in the circuit was filed on June 19. The appeals court issued its three-page opinion three days later.