Sexual Abuse in the Catholic Church in New York
We represent hundreds of survivors of child sexual abuse who are pursuing claims against the Catholic Church in New York.
Can I Still File a Claim? The Child Victims Act gave survivors of childhood sexual abuse in New York a two year “window” to file a claim for the abuse they suffered regardless of their current age. That window closed in mid-August 2021. We do not know if the New York Assembly will re-open the window, but it still may be possible for some abuse survivors to pursue their claim. Please contact us to learn your options, including the possibility of trying resolve your claim without litigation.
Diocese of Rockville Centre Files for Bankruptcy: On October 1, 2020, the Diocese of Rockville Centre filed for bankruptcy. We have helped hundreds of abuse survivors pursue claims in other Catholic bankruptcies, including the current Dioceses of Buffalo, Rochester, and Syracuse. The bankruptcy does not mean abuse survivors will receive no compensation from the Diocese of Rockville Centre — the bankruptcy simply puts a “pause” on the current lawsuits against the Diocese while a bankruptcy judge decides a fair way to use its assets to compensate abuse survivors and others. Please contact us to learn your options and to make sure your legal rights are protected.
First Lawsuits Filed Under Child Victims Act: On August 14, 2019, some of our clients filed the first lawsuits against each Diocese in New York, including the Archdiocese of New York. Our clients’ cases were filed under the Child Victims Act, which gives all survivors of childhood sexual abuse, regardless of their current age, one year from August 14, 2019, to file a claim for the abuse they suffered.
Below is a list of the lawsuits our clients filed. If you want to read the lawsuit, click the link and it will open in a new window:
Larney et al. v. Archdiocese of New York et al.
Eskridge et al. v. Diocese of Brooklyn
D’Estries et al. v. Diocese of Rockville Centre et al.
Heldwein et al. v. Diocese of Buffalo et al.
Smith et al. v. Diocese of Albany et al.
Giovati et al. v. Diocese of Rochester
P.V. et al. v. Diocese of Syracuse et al.
Story Regarding Religious Orders: Some of our clients recently chose to share their stories about sexual abuse involving religious orders. The articles include interviews with Michael Pfau, one of the attorneys featured on this website who has represented abuse survivors across the country. You can watch one of the stories by clicking here and you can read another one of the stories by clicking here.
List of Credibly Abused Priests: As the Church in New York undergoes more and more scrutiny for how it handled child abuse in its ranks, it is likely that more and more evidence will come to light showing that the Church failed to protect children from sexual predators in its ranks. The following Dioceses and Archdioceses are located within New York, and each has been subject to investigations into how they handled child sexual abuse in their ranks:
