MILWAUKEE (WI)
Fox 11
By M.L. JOHNSON, The Associated Press
Published: September 6, 2014
MILWAUKEE (AP) – The Archdiocese of Milwaukee is returning to mediation with hundreds of sexual abuse victims, and experts say it wouldn’t be surprising if they reached at least a partial deal that would help resolve the archdiocese’s long and costly bankruptcy case.
The archdiocese filed for bankruptcy in 2011, saying it wouldn’t have the money to pay if it lost lawsuits filed by victims of clergy sexual abuse. The two sides tried mediation in 2012 but couldn’t reach an agreement.
In February, the archdiocese proposed a reorganization plan that would set aside a total of $4 million for the roughly 130 people who were abused by priests who worked directly for the archdiocese, but nothing for hundreds of others abused by religious order priests or laypeople.
Victims have vowed to oppose the plan in court. Many of them still hope to tap into a $55 million trust fund created by New York Cardinal Timothy Dolan when he was the Milwaukee archbishop. The trust fund will be the focus of two days of talks scheduled to begin Monday in Minneapolis, with both sides having an incentive to settle before the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago issues a decision that could affect cases in other dioceses that also have money in trusts.
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