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	Settlement Reached in Fairbanks Diocese Lawsuit By Mary Beth Smetzer News-Miner November 20, 2009 http://newsminer.com/pages/full_story/push?article-Settlement+reached+in+Fairbanks+diocese+lawsuit%20&id=4586675-Settlement+reached+in+Fairbanks+diocese+lawsuit&instance=home_news_window_left_top_1 FAIRBANKS — A settlement between the Fairbanks Catholic Diocese and a creditors committee representing nearly 300 alleged sex abuse victims might be resolved by early next week. Robert Hannon, diocesan chancellor, said Thursday that a recently forged mediated agreement is “broad in principle” and details are being worked out by attorneys on both sides. “I can’t give specifics, but we have come to economic terms with the committee representing claimants, and the settlement will be announced on record at a hearing scheduled at the bankruptcy court on Nov. 24,” Hannon said. Ken Roosa, an Anchorage attorney who represents 240 victims with claims against the diocese in U.S. Federal Bankruptcy Court in Anchorage, would not comment on a possible settlement. “There is a mediation in process, and the judge sent out an order that nobody is to talk until this thing is concluded,” Roosa said. Ford Elsaesser, lawyer for the 46 parishes in the sprawling diocese, the Catholic Trust of Northern Alaska and the Monroe Foundation, released a statement Thursday saying the entities he represents “are pleased that an overall settlement has been reached, which addresses the needs of the claimants and preserves the ongoing mission of the diocese, the parishes and the Catholic school. “This settlement hopefully will be conducive to an atmosphere of healing and will allow the parishes and schools to continue their mission despite the constrained financial circumstances,” Elsaesser said. The Fairbanks diocese declared bankruptcy more than a year and a half ago. In September, federal bankruptcy Judge Donald McDonald removed Continental Insurance Company from participating in the settlement. The diocese responded in late October with a second amended reorganization plan in an attempt to settle 292 alleged sexual abuse claims, some dating back five decades. The revised October plan upped creditor awards to $11 million, differing from an April plan that offered plaintiffs $8.6 million in cash. The revised plan proposed to raise $7.5 million dollars by selling diocesan properties such as the chancery, the Catholic Schools of Fairbanks and the Kobuk Center/Residence to the diocese’s endowment fund, estimated to be worth about $14 million. The details of the plan, which guaranteed a minimum of $5,500 to each victim and much more to those who suffered serious abuse, provoked an outcry of complaints from victims. Victims also will have an opportunity to collect compensation from insurance companies involved in the litigation. Although details of an impending potential settlement agreement won’t be made public unless they are approved by the bankruptcy court on Tuesday, Hannon said it represents sacrifices on the part of parishes, foundations, a host of people, the committee for claimants and the claimants themselves. Contact staff writer Mary Beth Smetzer at 459-7546 or msmetzer@newsminer.com
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