UPDATE:  On December 1, 2019, the New Jersey Sexual Abuse Survivor Law went into effect. This law opens up a two-year window for sexual abuse survivors to file lawsuits until Nov. 30, 2021, regardless of when the abuse took place. There is less than one month left to file within the look-back window. Read more here!

In 2019, the Catholic Church leadership in New Jersey released a list of priests accused of abuse.

The list names 188 accused priests, and a good percentage of them had had some formal sanction by the church hierarchy, been brought up on criminal charges, or had some combination of the two on their record, according to Patch.com.

The list of New Jersey priests accused of abuse was a cooperative effort on the part of five New Jersey Catholic Church regional bodies including the dioceses of Metuchen, Newark, Trenton, Camden, and Paterson.

Names appearing on the list include priests and deacons that the Church says have been credibly accused of sexually molesting minors from the 1940s through the present day.

In May 2019, a report by lawyers representing an alleged victim named more than 300 New Jersey priests and other clergies they say are accused of sexual misconduct — many of whom were not included on the official list initially provided by the Catholic Church.

“Back in February [2019], Cardinal Tobin and the other bishops in New Jersey made a conscious effort to release the name of certain priest abusers,” said Greg Gianforcaro, one of the attorneys involved in the report, per NJ.com. “They have claimed to be open and transparent. Their list was horrendously inadequate.”

Reports of abuse have been linked to many levels of the Catholic Church and may have affected many people.

A former Catholic archbishop and cardinal who served both in Washington DC and New Jersey has been accused of multiple accounts of sexual abuse and harassment over the course of his long career in the Church, the Washington Post reports. Theodore McCarrick, who was once a cardinal and an archbishop, was defrocked (that is, had his ecclesiastical status within the church revoked) in February 2019 over the accusations. He began his career as a priest in New York and New Jersey.

In describing the circumstances of McCarrick’s defrocking, the Vatican did not specify how many victims were affected by the former cardinal’s abuse. The Vatican did note that the Church found McCarrick guilty of using his power to commit “sins” with both minors and adults, and of soliciting sex during confession, according to the Washington Post’s report into the issue.

Though the former cardinal faces allegations that he abused at least seven boys during the course of his career, the Washington Post says that it’s unlikely McCarrick will face legal action for his alleged crimes, as most of the allegations occurred outside of the statute of limitations.

The Archdiocese of Newark and the Diocese of Metuchen did not comment on the investigations of the former cardinal, per the Post. However, McCarrick gave an interview to Slate in which he denied the allegations.

Why Is the Catholic Church Releasing this Information Now?

As indicated by New Jersey’s WHYY, the Attorney General of New Jersey gathered a task force last September to begin investigating cases of priests’ alleged sexual abuse of minors. New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir Grewal’s investigation included looking into efforts by Church administrators to cover-up sexual abuse committed by clergy.

The release of the New Jersey list is part of a domino effect that started when the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced, in Sept. 2018, an investigation into allegations of clergy sexual abuse in Pennsylvania. According to PBS.org, claims, investigations, and settlements pertaining to sexual abuse by clergy have arisen across the country.

WHYY indicates that His Eminence Joseph W. Tobin, the Archbishop of Newark, wants to restore the people’s trust in the Catholic Church with its most vulnerable parishioners. He hopes to heal the damage caused by current scandals by offering transparency. The archbishop also hopes that the list will help victims get the justice they deserve.

What Resources Are Available To Victims of Priests Accused of Abuse?

As part of the New Jersey Catholic Church’s release of records, leaders predetermined that they wanted to set up a priest abuse victims fund from which injured parties could draw recompense.

The New Jersey Compensation Fund for Victims of Church Sexual Abuse of Minors was administered by the state with the Catholic Church releasing all control. All compensation from a given instance of abuse by a priest was to come from the diocese where the violation occurred, according to NJ.com.

Each situation was reviewed and evaluated by the administrators who would then decide upon an appropriate level of monetary damages. While there is no set cap on a monetary award, the maximum amount awarded to date in the neighboring state of New York with a similar church established fund has been $500,000.

There are both benefits and drawback to choosing compensation from a fund rather than pursuing litigation. Victims who apply for compensation through a church-affiliated victims fund may be required to waive their rights to sue for additional damages in the future, or even to talk about their experiences. Additionally, the financial sum that victims may be able to recover through one of these funds may be much lower than what they could receive through a civil trial. However, for some victims, going to court may be too traumatic. Each abuse survivor of a Catholic priest will need to decide their own best course of action.

In the case of New Jersey survivors, the deadline for pursuing compensation from the fund has already passed: the New Jersey Independent Victim Compensation Program has been closed since early 2020.

However, survivors still have time to file a lawsuit under the New Jersey Sexual Abuse Survivor Law’s two-year look-back window, which closes in less than a month: Nov. 30, 2021.

Victims who are interested in pursuing litigation against a priest who abused them, or the church that allowed the abuse to occur, may be eligible to speak to a qualified attorney about their options.

A number of states have recently updated their sexual abuse laws, including the statutes of limitations. Under the recently updated statute of limitations in New Jersey, many victims who were previously barred from pursuing justice may now be able to do so.

A two-year lookback window went into effect in December and allows victims of abuse whose cases had expired under previous statutes of limitations to pursue justice. The window closes later this month, on Nov. 30, 2021. Prior to these changes, the statute of limitations had been capped at age 20 since 1992. New Jersey has also extended its discovery rule from two to seven years, meaning that a victim has until seven years after the discovery that the abuse against them caused injury to file suit.

Victims can file lawsuits against their abusers, as well as the organizations that failed to protect them, until the age of 55 or for seven years following the realization that they were harmed by the abuse, reports NorthJersey.com. Many abuse victims have said that filing lawsuits against the priests who abused them are less about the money and more about forcing the Catholic Church or the individual priests to take responsibility.

What if the Name of an Abuser Does Not Appear on the List?

While the list focuses on priests and deacons, several victims and their family members have indicated that sexual abuse has occurred at the hands of people operating in different church capacities. Among those are Catholic school employees, Benedictine monks, and seminarians.

If you or someone you love suffered from sexual abuse perpetrated by a leader in the Catholic church, you may be able to file a lawsuit and pursue compensation. Filing a lawsuit can be a daunting prospect, so Top Class Actions has laid the groundwork for you by connecting you with an experienced attorney.

Consulting with a knowledgeable attorney can help survivors make an informed decision as to whether they should accept compensation from the fund or pursue litigation. Changes to New Jersey’s statute of limitations give survivors more options.

This article is not legal advice. It is presented
for informational purposes only.