Archdiocese of New Orleans reaches landmark settlement with abuse survivors

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The Archdiocese of New Orleans has reached a tentative settlement with hundreds of survivors of clergy abuse in its long-running bankruptcy case, agreeing to pay nearly $180 million in an effort to end the court battle that has consumed the local Roman Catholic Church for the past five years.

According to a press release issued Wednesday by the court-appointed committee that negotiated the deal on behalf of some 600 survivors, the archdiocese, its parishes and affiliated charities, and three of its four insurers will pay $179.2 million into a trust to benefit survivors, an amount that will be distributed after the church emerges from bankruptcy.

Money for the settlement would come from a variety of sources. The archdiocese, its 110 parishes and charitable organizations would all contribute funds, and additional money would come from the sale of church-owned real estate.

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It would be paid to a trust and then distributed to survivors, who would stand to receive around $300,000 each if the funds were divided evenly.

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If finalized, the agreement will also require the church, as previously agreed, to make public its full archive of records concerning sexual abuse.

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Though the agreement marks a significant step in a case that is one of the longest running and most expensive of the 40 abuse-related church bankruptcy cases filed in the U.S. over the past two decades, the tentative settlement still must overcome several hurdles. The most significant is gaining support — or overcoming opposition — of more than half a dozen plaintiff attorneys who represent individual abuse survivors and are currently asking the U.S. Bankruptcy Judge to dismiss the case, which would enable them to bring state court suits against the church and potentially recover massive jury awards for their clients.

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