On December 31, 2020, The Diocese of Camden, New Jersey filed its Chapter 11 Plan of Reorganization and detailed Disclosure Statement pursuant to Title 11 of the United States Code. The Bankruptcy Court has scheduled a hearing on February 4, 2021 at 10:00 a.m. to consider the adequacy of the Disclosure Statement, which is the initial step towards reorganizing and paying survivors and other creditors.
The Diocese filed Chapter 11 on October 1, 2020. Since its filing, the Diocese has produced over 10,000 pages of documents to the Tort Claimants’ Committee. The Diocese has also previously disclosed the names of all priests who have been credibly accused of any child abuse. No new case of abuse of a minor has been reported as having occurred since 2001. Since 1992, the Diocese has settled 170 claims and paid over $20 million to victims in addition to therapeutic care of over $950,000. Prior to the Chapter 11 filing, the Diocese participated in the Independent Victims Compensation Program run by Kenneth R. Feinberg, a renowned tort lawyer who handled the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund, the Hokie Spirit Memorial Fund (Virginia Tech shootings), Deepwater Horizon/BP oil spill fund, Aurora, Colorado shooting victim relief fund, The Newtown-Sandy Hook Community Foundation, and the One Fund (2013 Boston Marathon bombings).
Since filing Chapter 11, the Diocese has attempted to mediate the Chapter 11 process with the Tort Claimants’ Committee. Instead of making good faith efforts to mediate, the Committee has insisted that the Diocese wait until 2022 to even begin the reorganization process. The Diocese has provided detailed projections and made all its financial advisors available to the Committee on a 24/7 basis to show the dramatic impact of COVID-19 on its collections and the uncertainty arising therefrom. The Diocese has also repeatedly offered a virtual or in person meeting with all members of the Tort Claimants’ Committee to discuss the financial condition of the Diocese and any programs recommended by survivors. To date, the Committee and its attorneys have refused this offer. Further, the costs of Chapter 11 are substantial including nearly $250,000 per quarter for the United States Trustee fees and hundreds of thousands of dollars to the Committee’s counsel and advisors (who refuse to disclose their fees and bill at approx. $1,200 per hour). Recently, the Diocese of Guam reported over $4 million in fees for the first year of its Chapter 11 case.
The Diocese wants to continue to pay survivors rather than lawyers and other professional advisors. The average claim against the Diocese has been settled for approx. $115,000 and now is the time to determine how many claims remain. Plaintiffs’ lawyers have been advertising extensively so any claimant who wishes to come forward is well-aware of the Chapter 11 process and should be given that opportunity now. Instead of encouraging people to come forward, plaintiffs’ lawyers seem to want to elongate the process and see more money dissipated on wrangling.