Latest news with #MeredithGrabill
The Guardian
5 days ago
- Business
- The Guardian
New Orleans clergy abuse survivors begin voting on church bankruptcy deal
A two-month voting period for clergy abuse survivors and other creditors in the New Orleans Catholic archdiocese's bankruptcy to accept or reject the church's plan to settle has started after a federal bankruptcy judge recently approved the plan. It has also opened a window of time when supporters and opponents of the plan can actively solicit votes. Two-thirds of the voting claimants must approve the plan for the church to end its expensive and contentious five-year-long bankruptcy. Judge Meredith Grabill has stated that if the plan is not approved, she will dismiss the archdiocese's bankruptcy, and the church could end up having to defend itself against claims individually in state courts. The deadline for claimants to cast their votes is 29 October at 11.59pm central time, although the proponents of the plan can extend that deadline without court approval, according to Grabill's order. The judge set a hearing to confirm or reject the settlement plan starting 12 November. The first statement backing the plan was issued by Pat Moody, chair of a committee of survivors who negotiated a settlement that could pay as little as $180m to the church's creditors and as much as $235m. 'This bankruptcy plan is a good outcome for abuse survivors, providing just and prompt compensation. If survivors vote to approve the Plan, they can expect to start getting payments within 3-4 months after approval. If survivors vote to reject the plan, I fear survivors won't see any money for another 3-5 years, if ever,' Moody said. 'And, very importantly, approval of the plan will ensure unprecedented child protection measures and public access to the documents showing the history of abuse in the archdiocese of New Orleans. For many of us, this structural reform is as important as financial compensation, and will only happen if the plan is approved.' A bloc of as many as 200 survivors are represented by attorneys who want the bankruptcy dismissed and have said in court that the deal is 'dead on arrival'. Whether enough survivors vote to approve the plan will largely depend on how each claimant can expect to be compensated. Points will be assigned to each abuse claim based on the severity of the abuse and its impact on each victim's life, but the records do not offer much clarity on how much actual money those points will be worth. Claims regarding rape by a Catholic church employee will be worth twice as much money as claims about a priest masturbating in front of someone, four times more than claims of a cleric touching someone under their clothes and seven times more than claims about being shown pornography, according to details from a settlement disclosure statement filed last week and amended this week. The survivors' committee that negotiated the settlement selected Richard Arsenault, a personal injury lawyer in Alexandria, as the abuse claims reviewer. He will consider the nature and impact of the abuse to award between zero and 100 points to each claim. Points can then be added for those who participated in criminal prosecution of the abuser, those who sued before the bankruptcy began, and those who led efforts on behalf of other survivors. More points can be awarded based on the impact the abuse had on the victim's behavior, academic achievement, mental health and loss of faith and family relationships. Points can be reduced if the claimant was over 18 and consented to the sexual contact. Sign up to Headlines US Get the most important US headlines and highlights emailed direct to you every morning after newsletter promotion Survivors won't know how much each point is worth until Arsenault is done assessing all claims. John Lousteau, a survivor who filed a lawsuit in 2021 against a Catholic religious order, recently won a $2.4m jury verdict. Although it's separate from the bankruptcy case, the Lousteau verdict is viewed by many as a benchmark for what the average survivor could get if they are willing to spend more years in court. The final plan approved by Grabill allows anyone who filed a sexual abuse claim or lawsuit against the archdiocese before 14 August to vote on the plan, even though it had previously stated that 250 claims filed after March 2021 were filed too late. Those with abuse claims against the church's parishes, schools and affiliated charities have until 15 October 2025 to file their claims to be eligible to vote. That appears to rebut arguments made by some of the church's creditors that as many as half of the abuse claims should be thrown out. Information and support for anyone affected by rape or sexual abuse issues is available from the following organizations. In the US, Rainn offers support on 800-656-4673. In the UK, Rape Crisis offers support on 0808 500 2222. In Australia, support is available at 1800Respect (1800 737 732). Other international helplines can be found at
The Guardian
16-07-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
Half of New Orleans clergy abuse claims could be tossed in US bankruptcy court
As New Orleans's bankrupt Roman Catholic archdiocese finalizes a plan to settle 633 clergy abuse claims filed against it, the church's investors are arguing in US bankruptcy court that about half of those survivors could have their claims thrown out. Church officials said Wednesday they won't necessarily seek that, though the eligibility of claims will be determined by a court-appointed examiner. If the investors' arguments prevail, it could have major effects on whether the US's second-oldest Catholic archdiocese settles its expensive, five-year-old bankruptcy case – or if victims of abuse by its clergy will pursue their claims individually in civil court. Meanwhile, documents filed in court on Tuesday outlined how the church has agreed to pay at least $180m into a settlement trust, with the total growing to between $210m and $235m million if a number of affordable apartment complexes owned by a church affiliate can be sold. After the eligible claimants are determined, they will get to vote to approve or reject the settlement by 29 October. If two-thirds of the voting claimants do not approve the settlement, judge Meredith Grabill has said she'll have no choice but to throw the church out of bankruptcy. Attorneys representing a bloc of about 180 claimants are already urging their clients to vote 'no'. That group alone wouldn't be large enough to derail the settlement if there are more than 600 claimants voting on it. But it would be easily large enough to kill the deal if claims questioned by the church's bondholders are thrown out. The archdiocese has previously noted that 154 claims were filed after a March 2021 deadline set by the bankruptcy court. But it hasn't asked to have those claims thrown out. The church also argued in court filings that 142 more claims turned out to be duplicates, named abusers who were part of religious orders or other groups not under the archdiocese's authority or came from victims who were already paid individual settlements. If all those claims in question are thrown out, it would leave 337 claimants – not 633. While a smaller number of claimants would make it easier for opponents of the plan to muster enough 'no' votes to get the church tossed from bankruptcy, it would also mean a higher average payout for each claimant. With 633 claimants, a $235m settlement would yield an average payout of about $370,000. With 337 claimants, the average would jump to almost $700,000. That would dwarf the average payment of $540,000 by the Catholic diocese in Rockville Centre on Long Island, New York which many claimants pointed to as a fair standard for the New Orleans settlement terms. On Tuesday, the church and a committee that negotiated the settlement on behalf of abuse victims filed a joint settlement plan and disclosure statements. The central terms of the agreement were announced in May, but there were a few surprises. A key one is about what the church will disclose in a public archive of its files about child sexual abuse. The agreement says the archive will include claims against clergy already found by the archdiocese to be credibly accused of abuse – or clergy or church staff named in at least three verified claims. Those named by one or two claimants would not be included in the archive. Also, as WWL Louisiana and the Guardian first reported in June, archdiocesan bondholders accused the church of securities fraud for refusing to make $1m in interest payments to the investors after repeatedly promising all debts would be fully paid. In new court documents, the bondholders further alleged that the church set a cap of $20m on real estate sales as a measure to protect itself from being forced to sell property to pay abuse claims. The church took that step in 2020, back at a time when it believed most of the abuse claimants would have no standing to file lawsuits against the church in court because of how long they had waited to come forward. But the Louisiana state legislature passed a so-called lookback law that allows victims to file lawsuits no matter how long ago the abuse occurred, and the church's efforts to strike down the law failed. Ramon Antonio Vargas contributed reporting
The Guardian
29-04-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
New Orleans Catholic diocese ordered to defend bankruptcy case from dismissal
In a major development for the second-oldest Catholic diocese in the country, a US bankruptcy judge has ordered the Archdiocese of New Orleans to appear in court in June and show why its five-year-old bankruptcy case should not be dismissed. Judge Meredith Grabill's order suggests little concrete progress has been made since 13 September 2024, when the archdiocese and a committee representing more than 500 clergy abuse claimants filed competing plans for settling the bankruptcy. Those two plans were worlds apart, with the church offering to pay the survivors an average of $125,000 per claimant and the committee seeking an average of about $2m per claimant. Grabill issued the order on Monday, just three days before the fifth anniversary of the archdiocese filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on 1 May 2020. The archdiocese sought the protection from mounting claims of child sexual abuse by priests and deacons spanning more than 60 years. Grabill wrote the church must appear 26 June to show why the case should not be dismissed, which would force the church to face potentially hundreds of separate lawsuits individually in civil court. The judge has expressed frustration with the lack of progress before, as the legal fees paid by the church to pursue bankruptcy protection ballooned to more than $41m. The church issued a statement saying there were still hopes for settlement talks. 'While our attorneys will work to formally respond to the court's order, we are pleased to have the opportunity to share our significant progress in negotiations to bring just and equitable compensation to the survivors and creditors while providing a sustainable path forward for the ministry of the Catholic Church to continue in our area,' the church statement said. 'Despite the unacceptable amount of time and money spent over the past five years, we believe resolution of these bankruptcy proceedings will be for the benefit of all survivors and creditors and the faithful of the Archdiocese of New Orleans,' it added. The two sides have met several times for mediation and the court has hired three outside experts to help resolve the wide gap between the two sides, but Grabill wrote in her order: 'The court views the two proposed plans on file as facially unconfirmable.' She added: 'The record in this case as it stands today shows that, after five years and millions of dollars expended, no coalition of parties has proposed a confirmable plan.' In the US, call or text the Childhelp abuse hotline on 800-422-4453 or visit their website for more resources and to report child abuse or DM for help. For adult survivors of child abuse, help is available at In the UK, the NSPCC offers support to children on 0800 1111, and adults concerned about a child on 0808 800 5000. The National Association for People Abused in Childhood (Napac) offers support for adult survivors on 0808 801 0331. In Australia, children, young adults, parents and teachers can contact the Kids Helpline on 1800 55 1800, or Bravehearts on 1800 272 831, and adult survivors can contact Blue Knot Foundation on 1300 657 380. Other sources of help can be found at Child Helplines International
