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	Group Seeks Diocese's Data on Finances By Shirley Ragsdale Des Moines Register [Davenport IA] June 15, 2007 http://desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070615/LIFE05/706150377/-1/ENT05 A creditors committee has asked a bankruptcy judge to authorize hiring financial advisers to review Davenport Catholic Diocese records. The diocese filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2006. Then-Bishop William Franklin said settlement demands by people alleging they were sexually abused by priests exceeded the diocese's ability to pay current and future claims. Attorneys for the creditors committee filed an application this week in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Davenport to hire Aurora Management Partners Inc. of Charlotte, N.C., according to court filings. The creditors want the company to conduct a financial review of 48,000 pages of church documents to help maximize the amount of money they receive. "Basically, the creditors committee is made up of abuse victims who are asking to retain a forensic accountant to look at the accounting procedures of the diocese," said Craig Levien, attorney for creditors committee Chairman Michl Uhde of Davenport, who won a $1.5 million judgment against the diocese at a September trial. "The accountants would examine the financial records looking for suspicious transactions - real estate transfers, gifts, money transfers between church entities or contributions made shortly before the bankruptcy was filed," Levien said. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Lee Jackwig has set a July 2 deadline for objections. The diocese claims more than $12.5 million in total assets, all of which will be liquidated to pay creditors. In May, the court approved the sale of three properties for more than $560,000. The diocese also plans to sell the St. Vincent Center, where the chancery is located, and cash in several insurance policies. Shirley Ragsdale: sragsdale@dmreg.com
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