Legal Battles Remain Against Continental Insurance Company
(Rochester, NY) – Today it was announced that the survivors in the Diocese of Rochester Chapter 11 bankruptcy case have reached a settlement with two additional insurance companies, Interstate and First State, totaling $50.75 million. This is in addition to the $75.6 million in settlement money from the Diocese and another insurer, LMI, who both previously settled with the survivors. The Diocese filed for bankruptcy protection after approximately 475 courageous survivors brought lawsuits against the Diocese under the New York Child Victims Act.
The Diocese of Rochester partial settlement consists of five main components: 1) a $55 million payment from the diocese and parishes; 2) a $20.6 million settlement with insurers LMI and LMI Underwriters; 3) a $50 million settlement with the insurer Interstate; 4) a $750,000 settlement with the insurer First State; and 5) the ability to litigate against the remaining non-settling insurer, Continental Insurance Company.
“This is a real measure of accountability, but partial. It is happening because the survivors have stood strong, have stood united, and have been a force for the protection of others and the rigorous pursuit of justice,” said attorney Jeff Anderson. “We’ll continue this struggle and this journey through the righteous conclusion.”
The structure of this settlement, which still needs court approval, will allow survivors to directly pursue Continental Insurance Company, who faces potentially hundreds of millions in exposure. “This settlement will permit survivors to force Continental Insurance Company to honor their obligations and to compensate the survivors for the horrors they endured. These survivors have courageously stood up to the Diocese for accountability and will bravely do the same to this insurer,” said attorney Steve Boyd.
“For over three years, Continental Insurance Company has refused to acknowledge the responsibilities they hold and do right by the survivors who were abused in the diocese they insured,” said Jeff Anderson. “CNA’s actions prove that they would rather have survivors continue to suffer than be accountable and abide by their obligations. This cowardice effort by CNA will soon be exhausted, and survivors will triumph.”
The Diocese of Rochester was the first diocese in New York to file for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy under mounting pressure from lawsuits filed under the New York Child Victims Act. To date, an additional four dioceses in New York have followed the cynical and damaging playbook of the Diocese of Rochester: Diocese of Buffalo (2.28.2020), Diocese of Syracuse (6.19.2020), Diocese of Rockville Centre (10.1.2020), Diocese of Albany (3.15.2023), and the Diocese of Ogdensburg (7.17.23). The Diocese of Rochester settlement still needs to be approved by the bankruptcy court and voted on by the approximately 475 survivors.