NEW ORLEANS — An organization of victims of sexual abuse by Catholic clergy is seeking dismissal of a bankruptcy filing by the Archdiocese of New Orleans.
The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests said in a Monday news release that its filing, submitted Friday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in New Orleans, claims the archdiocese filed the petition for Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization in “bad faith.”
SNAP says the bankruptcy case was filed to give the archdiocese an advantage in state lawsuits that victims have filed against church leaders.
Tactical advantages provided by the bankruptcy case include enabling Archbishop Gregory Aymond to avoid having to testify in a state court deposition on how the church handled the allegations of clergy abuse, SNAP’s filing said.
“The May 1st bankruptcy filing stopped the good people of New Orleans from learning the truth about the Catholic spiritual leaders who were all appointed by Rome. We deserve to hear the truth,” SNAP’s news release said.
The archdiocese has not filed a response. The archdiocese has said it filed for bankruptcy reorganization to provide time to develop a plan for settling claims using its assets and insurance.
