Milwaukee – The Archdiocese of Milwaukee has come up with its hoped-for final settlement plan that will end the Church’s nearly five-year-old bankruptcy case, but childhood sexual abuse victims who have filed lawsuits against the Archdiocese said they were stunned by the latest proposal. They claim the $ 21 million allocated to victims is much less than that given in other bankruptcies and that victims are pitted against victims.

Only sketchy details of the plan were released in early August. The full plan is due to be filed with the bankruptcy court by August 24th. Plaintiffs will vote on the plan by November 6, and a court hearing for approval is scheduled for November 9.

The plan came about during a three-day mediation “a few weeks ago in July”, according to a statement by Archbishop Jerome Listecki. It was the fourth attempt to reach a brokered settlement and the only one carried out in secret.

According to a statement from the archdiocese, the plan provides for $ 21 million to compensate 330 victims. However, according to an attorney for some plaintiffs, up to $ 7 million goes to attorneys who have worked for victims for more than a decade without pay.

Another 240 victims who have made claims will not get anything. The Claims Committee decided to set aside part of the award – approximately $ 184,000, or $ 2,000 for each of the 92 claims that were deemed unfounded and ineligible for payment by the Archdiocese.

Monica Barrett, a woman who claims Ms. William Effinger was one of the victims of no compensation in 1968 when she was 8 years old. She filed a lawsuit against the Archdiocese in 1993, but the trial was dismissed because it was time barred. In 2011, archdiocese lawyers contacted her and suggested that she file a lawsuit.

“They said they wanted to settle any old claims,” ​​Barrett said, adding that she decided to contact an attorney because she didn’t trust the archdiocese. “I thought this would be my opportunity to get some level of accountability for what happened to me.”

The archdiocese later had her case dismissed from bankruptcy, claiming she was Effinger’s first victim and they couldn’t have known he was an abuser. Effinger died in prison after being convicted of another abuse.

Barrett said the proposed deal was tough on all victims.

“It’s very hard for the people who aren’t getting anything, but it’s also hard for those who are getting paid,” Barrett said. “How will that convey a sense of healing when the person you’ve stood by for all these years gets nothing?”

How much each claim receives is determined by an administrator appointed by the bankruptcy judge, Susan V. Kelley.

“It’s exponentially the lowest bankruptcy compensation for victims in the United States,” said Peter Isely, Midwest director of the Survivors Network for Those Who Have Been Abused by Priests (SNAP).

The average victim compensation after attorney fees for all other U.S. church bankruptcies was $ 300,000, Isely said.

For years, Wisconsin has been one of the toughest states for victims of clergy sex to seek compensation.

According to BishopsAccountability.org, the average victim compensation in Wisconsin is $ 50,000.

From the late 1980s through 1995, a number of civil lawsuits were filed against the Archdiocese of abuse. In 1995, a ruling by the state Supreme Court ruled that the Church could not be sued for negligence of victims of clergy sexual abuse. Dozens of pending lawsuits were dismissed following this decision. No new lawsuits have been filed for over a decade.

In 2007, the state Supreme Court ruled that if church leaders knew about an abusive priest and failed to protect the victims, the church could be sued for fraud. This led to two dozen lawsuits that Listecki said initiated the filing for bankruptcy. The victims and their lawyers accused the archdiocese of filing for bankruptcy in order to avoid the embarrassment of public trials and possible jury awards.

“Why the archdiocese was even allowed to maneuver and manipulate its sexual abuse secrets into state bankruptcy in the first place remains a mystery,” said Isely. “Not only was the archdiocese flushed on filing, since going bankrupt, the archdiocese has claimed that not a single one of the 575 victim cases is valid.”

The archdiocese has said it paid approximately $ 30.5 million in settlements and therapy prior to bankruptcy. Most of that sum, $ 16.7 million, was paid to 10 California victims in 2006 by a Milwaukee priest who worked in the state.

The bankruptcy attorneys and other professionals working on the case ultimately receive close to $ 20 million in compensation, bringing the total cost of attorney fees to about $ 27 million, or nearly double the victims’ compensation.

But attorney fees are undoubtedly higher. Legal fees for a related case that challenged the $ 57 million transfer to the Cemetery Trust Fund are not yet known. The 7th District Court of Appeals ruled that the transfer was not protected by the First Amendment or the Religious Freedom Restoration Act and could have been included in the bankruptcy. Listecki, the fund’s trustee, has asked the US Supreme Court to open the case, but the plan is for that motion to be dropped if the settlement is approved.

A surprising addition to the new plan is that 107 of those who will receive compensation have been abused by religious priests, brothers or sisters, or a lay employee of an archdiocesan community, school or institution. The archdiocese had refused to accept compensation for the people abused by members of the order.

“Does that mean they will publish their names of the religious priests?” asked Isely. “They said they would publish the names of the perpetrators in justified cases.”

Claims from 157 victims are not compensated for a variety of reasons, including prior financial grants or previously dismissed claims. Isely requested that these reports be published.

“Who did the investigation?” asked Isely. “How did you find out that the claims were invalid?”

Michael Finnegan, one of the attorneys who represent many of the plaintiffs, admitted that many of the victims are dissatisfied with the proposed settlement and said the agreement was forced on a committee of creditors. “It was a situation where the archdiocese was forced to choose between a terrible option and a more terrible option.”

How could it be worse?

The plaintiffs’ committee “is facing hundreds of additional claims that have been dismissed and an additional $ 5 to 10 million spent on bankruptcy,” said Finnegan. “It would have been likely that what was left for the survivors would have been closer to $ 5 million.”

The Archdiocese has stated time and time again that while it does not question the claims made by the victims, none of the claims are valid. Archdiocese’s chief attorney, Francis LoCoco, complained in a recently taped court hearing that the other side’s attorneys were delaying a bankruptcy settlement and suggested that the cemetery fund could be liquidated and used to judge each survivor’s claims.

The plan also provides a $ 500,000 fund to pay for therapy for the victims. The fund is financed by all parishes in the archdiocese. However, the communities and schools will be protected from future civil claims by plaintiffs. At least one case against a municipality is pending in a state court.

The long-closed De Sales Preparatory Seminary, Faith in Our Future Trust (an education and belief-building program), and other Catholic institutions are also protected from future legal proceedings. No Archdiocese property will be sold as part of the transaction.

According to the archdiocese, the plan will be funded with $ 11 million from insurance settlements and $ 16 million from the Cemetery Trust, of which $ 3 million will be in loan.

Listecki said in a written statement about the victims that “no amount of money could ever restore what was taken from these people,” but added that it is “the best way to acknowledge past hurts and try to stand up for them.” Future reconciliation “. . “

But, he said, the settlement would open a new chapter for the Church. “If we turn this chapter of our archdiocesan history, we can better focus on our mission – to proclaim Christ and disciples through the sacramental life of the Church.”

Barrett, one of the victims who will not get anything in comparison, replied Listecki: “I am glad that you can do that. We will live this chapter for the rest of our lives.”

[Marie Rohde is a frequent contributor for NCR.]