CALIFORNIA CLERGY SEXUAL ABUSE LAWSUITS

Fighting for Clergy Abuse Lawsuits in California

In recent years, various investigations, legal filings, and high-profile payouts have revealed alarming evidence of rampant sexual abuse within California Catholic Churches. In addition to numerous accused priests and thousands of abused survivors, the evidence has also shown that all 12 of California’s Roman Catholic Dioceses woefully failed to protect victims by shielding priests from consequences.

Now, survivors are stepping forward in increasing numbers to hold the Church accountable.

Levy Konigsberg is an award-winning trial practice known nationally for litigating sexual abuse lawsuits against powerful institutions and religious organizations. If you have questions about a potential case, we want to help. Our firm represents survivors across California and offers free and confidential consultations.

• Do I have grounds for a clergy abuse lawsuit?
• What types of damages can I recover?
• Extended filing deadlines for sex abuse survivors
• Do I still have time to file a lawsuit?
• California AG investigation is still ongoing
• Scope of abuse within California Catholic churches
• How Levy Konigsberg can help you

LK Investigating Clergy Sex Abuse Across California

Our clergy sex abuse attorneys in California have extensive experience litigating sexual abuse lawsuits and are available to help evaluate your eligibility to pursue a civil lawsuit against a California Catholic Diocese.

While every case is different, you may have a potential claim if you were sexually abused as a child or an adult by a priest, Church volunteer, or other member of any of California’s 12 Roman Catholic Dioceses, including:

• Diocese of Sacramento
• Diocese of Santa Rosa
• Diocese of Stockton
• Diocese of Oakland
• Diocese of San Jose
• Diocese of Monterey
• Diocese of Fresno
• Diocese of San Bernardino
• Diocese of Orange
• Diocese of San Diego
• Archdiocese of San Francisco
• Archdiocese of Los Angeles

California AG Investigation Is Still Ongoing

In May 2019, former California Attorney General Xavier Becerra announced that his office had launched a sweeping investigation into sexual abuse within California Catholic Churches.

According to Becerra, the investigation would review how the state’s 12 Roman Catholic Dioceses handled allegations of child sexual abuse, including whether church leaders adequately reported sexual misconduct allegations against priests and other church members as required by state law.

Becerra also announced that his office had sent requests to each diocese to preserve all records related to child sex abuse, including any records in “secret archives.”

But as AGs in other states, such as Illinois and Michigan, have released reports revealing a devastating legacy of abuse within their churches, the California AG’s investigation has yet to provide any meaningful update on its findings. The silence has prompted many survivors and advocates to pressure California’s new AG, Rob Bonta, to provide an update.

In May 2023, for example, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) issued a letter urging Bonta to release a report about its findings.

Scope of Child Sex Abuse within CA Catholic Churches

Despite the lack of any formal update from the California AG’s investigation into Catholic Church sexual abuse, progress is still being made – especially in terms of the growing number of legal filings from survivors, high-profile payouts from the Church, and various bankruptcy filings that have occurred in recent years.

For example:

• In January 2024, the Diocese of Orange and the Archdiocese of Los Angeles settled a clergy child sex abuse case for a record-breaking $10 million, marking the largest individual settlement against a religious organization in California. The settlement, which forestalled a trial involving numerous lawsuits against Roman Catholic dioceses statewide, comprises $9.5 million from the Diocese of Orange and $500,000 from the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. The case centered on notorious predators Father Eleuterio Ramos and Father Siegfried Widera, with the settlement seen as an acknowledgment of the church’s failures and a step towards resolving decades-old abuse claims by now-adult survivors.
• In December 2023, the Diocese of Sacramento, led by Bishop Jaime Soto, has announced plans to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection by March 2024 due to over 250 lawsuits alleging sexual abuse by clergy and staff. Soto stated that the bankruptcy process would enable fair compensation for victim-survivors. Critics like the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) argued against the move, suggesting that settlements are typically reduced in bankruptcy. The diocese highlighted the necessity of a fund to ensure compensation for all victims, given the potential depletion of diocesan funds in trial cases. The surge in lawsuits across California, including Sacramento, followed a change in state laws allowing suits irrespective of the statute of limitations, with a majority of claims dating back to 1980 or earlier.
• In August 2023, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Francisco has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, aiming to resolve approximately 500 lawsuits alleging childhood sexual abuse by priests. The majority of the alleged abuse dates back to the 1960s and 1970s involving deceased or former priests. The Archdiocese, serving 442,000 Catholics, faces $100-500 million in assets and liabilities. This bankruptcy follows similar actions by the dioceses of Oakland and Santa Barbara. Previous Catholic bankruptcies resulted in significant settlements, yet many dioceses remain in bankruptcy without finalizing agreements due to changes in state laws allowing new abuse claims.
• In May 2023, the Diocese of Oakland announced that it had filed for bankruptcy after it was hit with over 330 claims brought by survivors who say they were sexually abused by priests and other clergy members with the Diocese’s churches. According to the Diocese, most of the claims involve sex crimes that occurred in the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s committed by priests who are deceased or no longer active. The filing was criticized by advocates who say it is nothing more than a legal tactic to deny justice and transparency to survivors.
• In June 2020, the Los Angeles Archdiocese agreed to pay $1.9 million to settle a lawsuit brought by a victim who was repeatedly sexually abused by Father Lawrence Lovell while he was an altar boy at San Gabriel Mission Church between 1982 and 1984. According to court records, the abuse occurred until Lovell, who had been accused of abusing other boys at San Gabriel, was transferred to the Diocese of Phoenix in 1984. This was the first settlement awarded under the California Child Victims Act.
• In 2019, California lawmakers passed AB 218, a law that extended the statute of child sex abuse lawsuits and created a three-year lookback window for older victims of childhood sexual abuse to file claims. Thanks to AB 218, numerous survivors with claims over decades-old abuse have stepped forward to file civil lawsuits against the Church. These filings have provided greater insight about the scope of sexual abuse within California Catholic Churches, and prompted several California Dioceses facing a flood of lawsuits to file for bankruptcy.
• In 2007, the Archdiocese of Los Angeles reached a $660 million settlement with survivors of clergy sexual abuse. The settlement, the largest reached by the Catholic Church at the time, came after the Archdiocese paid millions to settle other claims, including a $60 million settlement reached in December 2006 with 45 survivors whose claims dated from before the mid-1950s and after 1987, periods when the church had little or no sexual abuse insurance.
• In 2005, the Diocese of Orange agreed to pay $100 million to settle sexual abuse lawsuits brought by 90 survivors who were abused in the county’s parishes. At the time, the settlement was the largest paid by a U.S. diocese to settle sexual abuse claims.

Do I Have A Case?

You may have a sexual abuse claim against the Catholic Church if:

• You were sexually abused as a minor or an adult within the Church.
• The abuser was a priest, clergy member, or some other Church volunteer or employee.
• Your abuse occurred at any time in the past.

As with civil sexual abuse cases, claims filed with the bankruptcy settlement fund are separate from any criminal proceedings that may arise from abuse. Instead, they focus on holding the Archdiocese liable for damages. This means you may still have a claim even if:

• Your abuser is no longer alive.
• Your abuser was never charged or convicted of a crime.

Determining whether you have grounds to pursue a claim can be challenging, which is why our team at Levy Konigsberg is readily available to help.

Recoverable Damages in Sexual Abuse Claims

In addition to providing accountability and a sense of justice, civil sex abuse lawsuits allow survivors to recover financial compensation for their damages, which may include:

• Past medical and mental health expenses
• Future mental health expenses, including therapy, medications, etc.
• Pain and suffering
• Emotional anguish and psychological harm
• Lost income
• Other economic and non-economic damages

California Sexual Abuse Attorneys

Sexual abuse lawsuits, like other claims brought by plaintiffs who seek damages for injuries, are subject to a legal deadline known as the statute of limitations. When the statute of limitations expires, victims are not able to file claims or recover compensation.

Fortunately, California has recognized that the statute of limitations can act as a barrier to justice for sexual abuse survivors, which research has shown can take years or decades to come to terms with their abuse and the damages it had caused. As such, California passed the Child Victims Act in 2019 to extend the statute of limitations for child sexual abuse lawsuits.

Under the CA Child Victims Act

• Survivors sexually abused as minors can file claims until age 40 (22 years after turning 18)