Diocese of Rockville Centre reaches historic $320M settlement with more than 600 abuse survivors
The Diocese of Rockville Centre in Long Island, New York, the largest Catholic Diocese in the U.S. to file for bankruptcy, has agreed to pay more than 600 survivors of sexual abuse a historic $320 million and invest in rigorous child protection protocols in a legal settlement reach Thursday.
“The credit for having saved so many kids in the future from the horrors inflicted on so many in the past goes to the courageous survivors for having fought, suffered, endured, and stood strong against darkness and deceit,” Jeff Anderson of Jeff Anderson & Associates told The Christian Post in a statement Thursday.
“While there is a measure of accountability, the beneficiaries of this are the communities and the kids born and yet to be who are safer because of the exposure of the practices by the diocese and the bishops.”
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The settlement follows hundreds of survivors of sexual abuse coming forward after the enactment of the New York Child Victims Act in 2019. The survivors brought legal action, exposing hundreds of previously unidentified offenders in the diocese. Survivors were allowed a two-year window to file lawsuits regardless of how long ago their alleged abuse occurred.
Adam Slater, founding and managing Partner of Slater Slater Schulman LLP, which represents about 100 of the 600 clients in the case, said many of the victims who came forward are now older adults who have been waiting most of their lives to get justice.
“The majority of our clients are in their 60’s and 70’s — they have been waiting decades for justice, and we are extremely pleased to reach this settlement on their behalf,” Slater said in a statement to Long Island Press.
“Importantly, this is the largest Diocese settlement in the history of New York State. We hope it will serve as a model for other pending cases around the country so that adult survivors living with the lifelong trauma of being sexually assaulted by predator-priests can receive the compensation they deserve and begin healing,” he added.
Even though the Diocese of Rockville Centre filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy four years ago, the trial was expected to begin on Oct. 7 as the victims and the church struggled to reach a settlement.
Survivors were previously offered a $200 million settlement by the diocese in April, Newsday reported. But the offer was rejected. The church argued that a $450 million settlement initially proposed by lawyers for the survivors would put them out of business.
Though it could be weeks before the settlement is finalized, according to lawyers for both the diocese and the survivors, many are happy with the current progress of the negotiations.
“We are pleased that many of these child sex abuse survivors can get some form of closure to begin the healing process,” Jordan Merson, a Manhattan-based attorney, told Newsday.
“Through their perseverance, efforts, and courage, survivors must know that they can take comfort in knowing that other children in New York are safe,” Anderson told CP. “Today, we credit, we praise, and we honor all the survivors with whom we have stood in bringing litigation and their truth forward. They are heroes.”
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