Federal judge orders third opportunity for Baltimore Archdiocese victims to detail abuse

A federal judge in Maryland has ordered a third opportunity for victims of child sexual abuse in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Baltimore’s ongoing bankruptcy case to tell their stories of abuse, rejecting pushback from one of the archdiocese’s insurance companies.

Monday’s order by Judge Michelle Harner sets a two-hour status conference on Oct. 6 in Baltimore “to increase engagement and understanding” of the Chapter 11 bankruptcy case for survivors, following counsel for the Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors saying during a hearing last week that survivors have not felt “seen” during the yearslong bankruptcy proceeding.

The order specifies that none of the statements made by any party during the status conference will be considered as evidence.

“The Court is mindful of the need to preserve the integrity of the process in this case; it will not allow any party to get out in front of the mediation or other aspects of the plan of reorganization negotiations. The Court is also, however, unwilling to allow parties to be shut out of the process or unnecessarily silenced by it,” Harner wrote in an accompanying opinion. “A status conference allowing Survivors to address the Court, the Debtor, and other parties in interest is appropriate, an authorized tool available to the Court, and needed in this particular case to maintain confidence in the process and facilitate continued discussions and progress.”

The committee in April asked to schedule a two-hour hearing at which victims could tell their stories, just as they did in April and May of last year. In June, Century Indemnity Company, an insurer, objected to that request, saying the committee seeks to influence the judge as the factfinder in the case and contending that permitting another hearing also lacks statutory authority.

The archdiocese filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in September 2023, days before the Maryland Child Victims Act took effect. The law ended the statute of limitations for abuse victims to sue the institutions that enabled abusers. About 1,000 survivors have filed claims in the bankruptcy case.

Drew Glasnovich, counsel for the Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors, said in a hearing last week before Harner that the committee’s goal in requesting an additional opportunity for survivors to tell their stories of abuse is not meant to influence the court, but rather “lift the veil of secrecy.”

“We can’t just be robots; we have to be human beings,” Glasnovich said, noting the bankruptcy proceeding has asked survivors to confront their deepest traumas, where an opportunity for them to be heard would be “a powerful way” to keep survivors engaged in the process.

During last week’s hearing, Tancred Schiavoni, counsel for Century Indemnity Company, argued the committee has been given an outside influence and ultimately controls the length of the proceedings.

“There is a concern that we’re injecting something into the proceeding that could create an issue down the line,” Schiavoni said of the committee’s request to have a third hearing for survivors.

Glasnovich did not immediately provide a comment on the order, and Schiavoni did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Editor’s note: This story has been updated to correct the spelling of Tancred Schiavoni’s name.