Although many Catholic Dioceses across the United States have instituted victim compensation funds, survivors of Catholic childhood sexual abuse may benefit from hiring a lawyer before agreeing to a settlement offer.

Childhood Sexual Abuse Survivors Settle for Lowball Offers

According to an August 2019 article published by U.S. News & World Report, some survivors of childhood sexual abuse by Catholic priests and clergy members may feel pressured to accept settlement offers from the church rather than pursuing litigation against their abusers.

LaJarvis L. of Mississippi claims he was approached in January 2019 by a reverend from the Franciscan religious order. According to LaJarvis, the religious official offered him $15,000 if La Jarvis agreed to keep the two decades he suffered physical and sexual abuse from another Franciscan Friar a secret. He claims that this abuse included sexual assault, beatings, and other violations beginning when he was nine or 10.

LaJarvis told U.S. News that his first reaction was that the sum was not enough to make up for the years of suffering. However, the reverend allegedly told LaJarvis that he could accept the offer or get a lawyer.

LaJarvis did not have a lawyer and had a young family and mounting bills. He accepted the $15,000 offer, according to the Washington Post.

LaJarvis claims that at the time he signed the papers, he did not understand that the settlement included a confidentiality agreement. American Catholic officials have banned these agreements from being included in sexual abuse settlements.

Additionally, NPR reported that earlier this year Pope Francis issued a new church law requiring church officials to report sex abuse and cover ups of abuse. However, despite these decrees, the cover ups and settlement offers are reportedly still occuring.

The $15,000 LaJarvis accepted is much less than what survivors of Catholic childhood sexual abuse can expect to receive from lawsuits against the church or an individual diocese. Other Mississippi survivors who have filed childhood sexual abuse lawsuits against Catholic clergy members have settled for average payouts of more than $250,000. In other states, these payouts have been even higher, in the range of $500,000.

Catholic Sex Abuse Settlements

While many Catholic dioceses have established victim compensation funds over the past several years in order to compensate survivors of childhood abuse, these settlement offers are often contingent on survivors agreeing to sign a confidentiality agreement, or agreeing not to sue the church or individual clergy members. Survivors who pursue litigation rather than accept a settlement offer from church officials may be able to collect much more money financial than the offered sum. Hiring a qualified attorney to represent you in your legal case against the Catholic diocese or clergy members responsible for perpetuating or covering up the abuse you suffered may make it more likely for you to win your case and receive compensation.

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