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| Dolan Testimony Could Be Unsealed April 4 in Milwaukee Federal Bankruptcy Court
By Peter Isely
SNAP Wisconsin
February 22, 2013
http://03409bc.netsolhost.com/snapwisconsin/2013/02/22/dolan-testimony-could-be-unsealed-april-4-in-milwaukee-federal-bankruptcy-court/
Milwaukee Federal Bankruptcy judge Susan V. Kelley could rule as early as April 4th to unseal Cardinal Timothy Dolan’s sworn testimony taken yesterday in New York City concerning his management of clergy sex offenders and his transfer of tens of millions of dollars off the books before the Archdiocese of Milwaukee declared bankruptcy two years ago.
The Milwaukee Archdiocese and Dolan have put his testimony, along with that of disgraced former Archbishop Rembert Weakland and other senior Milwaukee church officials under court seal. Also under seal are over 60,000 pages of secret internal church files detailing decades of cover up of child sex crimes by scores of Milwaukee priests. Dolan could release his testimony at any time.
Contrary to the assertions of Dolan’s spokesperson yesterday, his publication of the names of some abusive priests on a Milwaukee Archdiocesan website in 2004 did not provide, according to the Milwaukee court, proper notice to victims and the public that the archdiocese was forthcoming about its involvement with priest molesters, removing them from ministry, and warning the public.
Kelley ruled today on several issues which could affect the outcome of the Milwaukee bankruptcy, now entering its third year, such as, the court, over the objections of the archdiocese, will begin to pursue possible insurance coverage for the 570 cases filed.
Lawyers for the archdiocese today attempted to argue that the church had no funds to continue their administrative payments of the bankruptcy, having spent over 9 million in lawyers’ fees without reaching a single settlement. The debtor, in this case the archdiocese, is required under bankruptcy rules to pay all legal, consultant and administrative costs.
But it was learned today that it appears that archdiocesan lawyers had struck a deal under the table with insurance companies so that, if all other court costs cease, their legal fees to fight victim’s cases would continue to be compensated. In fact, it appears lawyers for the archdiocese have already received significant legal payments by the insurance companies.
Archbishop Jerome Listecki of Milwaukee, since filing for bankruptcy, has made little or no effort to pursue insurance coverage for victims, even though Catholics have been paying insurance for years. Why? Because now we know archdiocesan lawyers are being paid by proxy to represent, absurdly, both the insurance carriers as well as the archdiocese. Kelley did not rule on this and other matters related to legal fees today but is expected to do so soon.
Kelley also stayed hundreds of claims objections by the archdiocese, and has permitted 10 “test” cases to go forward which represent, in principle, the various issues and objections involved in the 570 cases. When asked by Kelley if the archdiocese was actually considering having 570 separate court trials, the lead lawyer for the church answered: “yes.” Instead, the 10 cases Kelley has selected will be moving towards discovery, trial or possible settlement. Given the archdiocesan strategy so far, the later is highly unlikely.
Frank LoCoco, lead lawyer for the archdiocese, when queried why he continues to mount a legal strategy that seems designed only to dismiss all of the 570 cases filed in the court by victims, and in direct opposition to how every other church bankruptcy has been conducted, replied: “What happened anywhere else does not matter.”
Amazingly, when asked by Kelley, and after two years and over nine million dollars, the archdiocese said today it has no actual plan for reorganization on paper. Kelley gave them sixty days to do so.
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