New York Archdiocese agrees to nearly $1 billion settlement for sexual abuse victims

The proposal is subject to final approval by a committee of abuse victims.

The Archdiocese of New York has agreed to a nearly $1 billion settlement for victims of clergy abuse, one of the largest abuse settlements in U.S. Church history that comes after more than half a decade of litigation.

The New York-based law firm Jeff Anderson & Associates said in a press release on May 1 that the archdiocese had agreed with an abuse victims’ committee to recommend a settlement of $800 million, which would be paid “into a trust for approximately 1,300 survivors who have brought sexual abuse claims” under the stateʼs Child Victims Act.

The proposal will still be subject to “full survivor agreement” before it can be finalized, the law firm said.

The firm said the amount, if confirmed, would be paid in two installments of $615 million and $185 million within 15 months.

The archdiocese, meanwhile, will be required “to maintain their list of credibly accused clergy on their website and continue to update it with any new, substantiated abuse claims.”

The agreement also would result in a “temporary stoppage” of litigation against the diocese regarding alleged abuse.

Attorney Jeff Anderson described the proposal as “a transcendent triumph of courage by the survivors who have endured so much for so long.”

“It is far from full accountability, but it is a measure of responsibility and required transparency by the archdiocese that also requires the release of documents pertaining to sexual offenders,” he said.

In a statement on May 1, meanwhile, New York Archbishop Ronald Hicks said he was “cautiously optimistic” about the proposal.

“It cannot be denied that this has been a painful process — most significantly so for the victim-survivors and their families and loved ones who have suffered, in most cases, for decades,” the prelate said.

“I pray that all of us, as the family of God, will come together to support and affirm these individuals and take these next steps to bring about some healing and peace,” he added.

The nearly $1 billion payout would be among the largest in U.S. Church history. In October 2024 the Archdiocese of Los Angeles agreed to a slightly larger $880 million settlement.

The New York proposal, meanwhile, is considerably larger than an earlier reported proposed settlement of $300 million the diocese was said to be considering in December 2025.

Cardinal Timothy Dolan said at the time that the archdiocese had made “a series of very difficult financial decisions” to help fund the settlement, including staff layoffs and a 10% reduction in the archdioceseʼs operating budget.

The New York Archdiocese also has been engaged in a bitter dispute with its longtime insurer Chubb over payouts to victims. In February of this year, the archdiocese accused Chubb of running a “shadow campaign” against it by posing as a victims’ rights group.

The archdiocese in 2024 launched a lawsuit against Chubb, claiming the insurer was “attempting to evade their legal and moral contractual obligation” to pay out claims to abuse victims.

On May 1 lawyers for abuse victims said the proposed settlement also would allow victims “an opportunity to pursue recoveries from the Archdiocese of New Yorkʼs insurance companies.”

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