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	Settlement near in San Diego Sex-Abuse Cases? Catholic World News September 7, 2007 http://www.cwnews.com/news/viewstory.cfm?recnum=53379 San Diego, Sep. 7, 2007 (CWNews.com) - Lawyers for the Diocese of San Diego, California, met with attorneys for sex-abuse victims in a marathon negotiating session on September 6, amid rumors that a settlement could soon be reached to end months of legal wrangling. Although the negotiations being conducted before a federal magistrate have been shrouded in secrecy, the length of the Thursday-night session, coupled with the decision by a federal bankruptcy judge to postpone a hearing scheduled for earlier that day, signaled that the two sides were moving closer to an agreement. The San Diego diocese filed for bankruptcy protection in February 2007, citing the claims of 150 plaintiffs who report that they were molested by Catholic priests. In an unusually acrimonious legal battle, the diocese has subsequently been accused of filing misleading financial records and failing to seek a reasonable accommodation with the plaintiffs. Federal Judge Louise DeCarl Adler, who is presiding over the bankruptcy case, has prodded diocesan attorneys to reach a settlement with the sex-abuse victims. The San Diego Union Tribune cited informed sources as saying that a negotiated settlement would probably approach $200 million-- roughly twice the amount that the San Diego diocese had offered to abuse victims earlier this year.
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