Archdiocese of San Francisco Initiates Chapter 11 Bankruptcy

SAN FRANCISCO, CA-

The Archdiocese of San Francisco has taken the step of filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy due to the mounting pressure of over a 500 lawsuits alleging child sexual abuse.

This move comes as a response to the overwhelming legal challenges that the Archdiocese faces, acknowledging that addressing each case individually would be neither practical nor feasible.

Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone expressed his views on this matter in a recent news release, saying, “The unfortunate reality is that the Archdiocese has neither the financial means nor the practical ability to litigate all of these abuse claims individually, and therefore, after much consideration, concluded that the bankruptcy process was the best solution for providing fair and equitable compensation to the innocent survivors who have been harmed.”

The decision to seek bankruptcy protection has elicited mixed reactions.

Some survivors’ advocates have expressed skepticism regarding the Archdiocese’s financial situation.

The Survivors Network of Abuse by Priests remarked, “We seriously doubt that the Archdiocese of San Francisco does not have the assets to settle these lawsuits.

We find it disturbing that Archbishop Cordileone claimed this is the ‘best way’ for victims’ lawsuits to be resolved.”

The Archdiocese has invoked a California law that suspended the statute of limitations for sexual abuse cases during a three-year window, from January 2020 to December 2022.

This allowed victims until age 40 or five years from the discovery of their abuse to file civil actions against their alleged abusers.

The Archdiocese noted that a significant majority of the more than 500 claims pertain to incidents that occurred decades ago, involving priests who are no longer active in ministry or who have passed away.

The move by the San Francisco Archdiocese follows a similar action taken by the Catholic Diocese of Oakland, which filed for bankruptcy protection earlier in the year after receiving over 330 claims of sexual abuse.

The Catholic Church as a whole has been under scrutiny for its handling of reports detailing extensive cases of sexual abuse, accompanied by systemic failures and cover-ups in numerous countries.

Pope Francis has expressed a “zero tolerance” stance on abuse, stating in a recent interview that “a priest cannot remain a priest if he is an abuser,” emphasizing his commitment to preventing such abuse.

The Archdiocese emphasizes that the Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing will allow each claim to be fairly evaluated, bringing transparency into the proceedings and the Archdiocese’s financial situation.

A reorganization plan will be formulated, centered around available assets and insurance coverage to provide compensation to survivors.

However, some critics of the bankruptcy decision argue that the Archdiocese might not be as financially strained as it claims.

The abuse survivors’ network said, “Although the survivors’ group is certain that the Archdiocese is morally bankrupt, it does not believe that it is as financially strapped as it claims.”

This legal tactic has raised a lot of eyebrows, with network members emphasizing the need to prioritize the protection of children over assets and secrecy.

The Archdiocese of San Francisco serves a substantial Catholic population of more than 440,000 across the counties of San Francisco, San Mateo, and Marin, as stated on its website.

The unfolding bankruptcy process will likely have far-reaching implications, both for the Archdiocese itself and for the survivors seeking justice in their cases of child sexual abuse.

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CNN