BURLINGTON (KY)
The Courier-Journal
By Peter Smith
psmith@courier-journal.com
The Courier-Journal
BURLINGTON, Ky. -- A judge in Northern Kentucky yesterday said he would give preliminary approval to what could become the largest sexual abuse settlement in a Roman Catholic diocese in the United States.
Judge John Potter said he would approve the plan now because it only guarantees $40 million rather than a publicized figure of $120 million, even though the total could go that high.
Lawyers for the Diocese of Covington and the victims revised the draft of their agreement after Potter criticized the original draft last month, calling it a "sound bite" because it promised more money than either side could guarantee would be available.
The draft now says victims would be eligible for a fund of "up to $120 million," but it spells out that the diocese has guaranteed $40 million out of its own assets. The other $80 million would be available only if the diocese recovers that amount in a pending lawsuit against two of its insurers.