New York Archdiocese will pay US$800m to settle abuse cases

The settlement is second only in total to the $880 million deal reached by the Archdiocese of Los Angeles in 2024.

The Catholic Church has paid billions of dollars in settlements across the US in the past several years, after New York and other states enacted laws that temporarily enabled victims of child sexual abuse to file lawsuits over decades-old crimes.

The proposed settlement is subject to final documentation and full survivor agreement before it is complete, said lawyers for survivors.

New York Archbishop Ronald Hicks said in a letter to parishioners that he is “cautiously optimistic” that all of the sex abuse claimants will support the deal. He said the Church had cut spending on staff and operational expenses to fund the settlement.

“This has been a painful process – most significantly so for the victim-survivors and their families and loved ones who have suffered, in most cases, for decades,” Archbishop Hicks said.

In addition to the $800 million payment, the Archdiocese agreed to release documents pertaining to sexual offenders in the Church.

The settlement will allow abuse survivors to litigate against the Church’s insurers for additional payouts. The settlement also avoids a bankruptcy by the Archdiocese. 

The New York Archdiocese and abuse survivors began mediation in December before retired Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Daniel Buckley, who also mediated the Los Angeles settlement.

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New York archdiocese to pay $800m to settle sex abuse cases (By Dietrich Knauth/Reuters/Radio New Zealand)