Court weighs what church assets are vulnerable in sex-abuse suits

Portland, Oregon -

In the seaside town of Florence, parishioners at St. Mary's Catholic Church have pledged $1.9 million toward a major building expansion.

But attorneys for at least 72 men and women who say they were sexually abused by the church over the years have their eye on that money and much more elsewhere to help settle lawsuits totaling $534 million against the bankrupt Archdiocese of Portland.

So St. Mary's, 123 other parishes, 24 missions and 44 Roman Catholic schools in Western Oregon are moving fast to prove that parishioners intended their money only for building and running their parishes and schools.

By today, the archdiocese must present the Bankruptcy Court with a list of 10 parishes it wants for test cases and to argue eventually that those parishes can claim a right to their own assets. A court hearing is scheduled for May 9.

If they fail, Bankruptcy Judge Elizabeth Perris could rule that all assets registered in the archdiocese's name belong unequivocally to the archdiocese, making them available to claimants.

If that happens, the archdiocese could continue to argue that it holds those assets in trust not for the parishes, but for individuals or organizations that donated toward specific purposes.

Read the article at The Seattle Times dated January 31, 2005

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