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Photo: St. Eugene Cathedral in Santa Rosa, CA; via Wikipedia.
Roughly 260 sexual abuse lawsuits were paused when the Catholic Diocese of Santa Rosa filed for bankruptcy in 2023, leaving survivors frustrated that the alleged actions of abusive clergy and the institutional cover-ups that protected them remained in the dark. Now, a small group of those survivors may finally have their day in court.
According to reporting by The Press Democrat on Saturday, Judge Charles Novack of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of California recently approved a handful of lawsuits to move forward toward trial. These cases are expected to establish a benchmark for the diocese’s potential financial liability. Attorneys say this development could push insurers toward negotiating a global settlement while giving survivors the rare opportunity to testify publicly and gather evidence through discovery.
“When cases are ‘quieted’ by bankruptcy,” said a board member of the advocacy group Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP), “the public won’t have a clear read on who enabled the abuse, who covered it up, and whether those people are still in power.”
He recalled that when he was molested in the Oakland Diocese, a bishop claimed his abuser had no prior record. “His file was sanitized. There was no record of his probation,” he said. “We got the information by deposing the former chancellor of the diocese. So discovery is really important.”
Little has been disclosed about which specific Santa Rosa cases will move forward. According to a plaintiff’s attorney, any funds recovered through trial would likely be held in trust and distributed among qualified survivors.
Bankruptcy background
The Diocese of Santa Rosa, which spans from American Canyon in Napa County to Crescent City near the Oregon border, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in March 2023. It became one of six Catholic dioceses in California and one of 17 nationwide to seek bankruptcy protection amid an influx of sexual abuse lawsuits.
By the time of the filing, the diocese faced about 160 claims under a 2019 California law that temporarily lifted the statute of limitations for survivors over 40 to file childhood sexual abuse cases. Since the 1990s, the diocese had already paid at least $35 million in settlements.
In 2019, it released a list of 39 priests and bishops who had been credibly accused of sexual abuse or misconduct between the 1960s and 2010s.
The current legal efforts are playing out in two parallel arenas: Novack’s bankruptcy court and Judicial Council Coordinated Proceeding 5108 (JCCP 5108), a large coordinated civil case in Alameda County Superior Court that consolidates hundreds of Northern California lawsuits against multiple Catholic dioceses.
According to a plaintiff’s attorney, the decision by church leaders to file for bankruptcy represents the strength of the cases. “They would not be taking such expensive, egregious measures if there weren’t fear of liability,” she said.
Diocese acknowledges threat
Bishop Robert F. Vasa, who has led the Santa Rosa Diocese since 2011, said the potential damages are beyond the diocese’s means. “It’s absolutely no secret that sexual abuse lawsuits, even in the secular world, bring huge judgments in a court of law,” he said. “Regardless of whether it’s a $1 million judgment or a $2 million judgment, we don’t have the resources in a million years to pay for those.”
A bankruptcy court filing revealed that the diocese faced 27 sites tied to alleged abuse, including Hanna Boys Center in Sonoma County, Camp St. Michael in Mendocino County, and several parishes and schools in Santa Rosa, Eureka, and Napa. The diocese’s own estimate places the average monetary demand at $2 million per case, liability that could exceed $500 million if every plaintiff prevailed. The diocese listed assets between $10 million and $50 million.
To clarify potential exposure, Novack authorized a small number of test cases to proceed. “The committee wanted several cases released for trial to kind of set a benchmark, what are these cases worth in a real trial?” Bishop Vasa said. “Just to say to the insurers, ‘If these go to trial, there may be a huge judgment.’”
Insurance disputes and mediation
Insurance companies have been a major factor in the stalled progress. A liaison attorney for the JCCP 5108 cases said insurers have been “woefully deficient in fulfilling contractual promises” to cover claims. “They sold these policies in the ’70s, the ’80s, the ’60s, some into the 2000s, for $25,000, $35,000 and $55,000 apiece,” he said. “Now they owe, nationally, billions and billions of dollars in claims.”
In 2023, the survivors’ creditors committee asked for a special court conference to allow survivors to read statements. “This proceeding is likely the only opportunity that survivors in Santa Rosa will have to seek acknowledgement and justice for the decades of isolation and pain they endured,” the committee wrote.
The church supported the motion, but several insurers, including Lloyd’s of London and others under the Pacific group, opposed it. Judge Novack approved the petition, allowing survivors to speak privately in February 2024.
Since then, survivors, the diocese, and insurers have participated in multiple rounds of mediation. “It’s kind of a dance,” Bishop Vasa said. “We can never compensate for all the harm done. But we can manifest care and concern, and demonstrate that we are not trying to stand in the way of what is just.”
For Survivors Of Clergy Abuse:
If you are a survivor of clergy abuse within the Catholic Church, know that you still have legal rights, even if the abuse happened decades ago. Survivors are stepping forward to demand justice and accountability. Visit our Catholic Church Sexual Abuse Lawsuit Guide to learn how you can explore your options and take the first step toward healing and compensation. You can also fill out the secure, confidential form to have your case evaluated free of charge.
