Church insurance suit goes to Federal Court
A lawsuit filed by the Milwaukee Catholic Archdiocese against Lloyd’s of London and 13 other insurance companies has been transferred to Federal Court.
The suit had been filed Dec. 23 in Milwaukee County Circuit Court. It seeks unspecified damages from the insurance firms for their failure to pay claims against the archdiocese from victims of sexual assaults.
The suit was moved to Federal Court at the request of the 14 defendants. They said the suit belonged in Federal Court because it involved a sum of money greater than $50,000 and involved interstate commerce. All of the defendants have received extensions of the time limit for their replies to the archdiocese suit.
Insurers increasingly have taken a hard-line stance on sexual abuse coverage. As a result, many churches, Protestant as well as Catholic, have found it increasingly difficult to find or renew policies for coverage.
In similar cases elsewhere, insurance companies have argued that the church hierarchy knew of the sexual misconduct and failed to take appropriate action. Therefore, they argue, the misconduct was intentional on the part of the diocese and not covered by the insurance policies.
The Milwaukee archdiocese has refused to disclose how much it has spent to settle or defend itself against lawsuits alleging sexual misconduct by its priests. However, in 1993, Weakland revealed that the archdiocese had set aside $2 million to cover potential damages.
No civil case involving such priest misconduct has gone to trial locally. Many cases have been dismissed; some of those are being appealed. Secret settlements have been reached in other cases.
The suit against the insurance firms has been assigned to Magistrate Judge Patricia Gorence.