Attorney Denis Kitchen in Williamsville has been practicing law for more than 40 years and has spent the last 10 concentrating on bankruptcy cases.
- Bankruptcy is an option for those accused under CVA
- CVA signed into law in February
- More claims expected to be filed
"Chapter 11 bankruptcy is really a reorganization. It's to make some order out of chaos," Kitchen said.
Cases he said may halt litigation, but doesn't prevent it, as the court will still establish a series of deadlines.
"It's useful for a company or a not-for-profit corporation, such as a church for example. To at least organize perhaps an onslaught of various claims," he said.
An onslaught of abuse claims have been filed against the Diocese of Buffalo, Boy Scouts of America, and local school districts as part of the one year look-back window under the Child Victims Act signed into law earlier this year.
Kitchen said should any of these groups file for bankruptcy, namely the Diocese, it'll likely review its assets and properties, as well as look to the Vatican leadership in Rome for financial help once the window closes next year.
"It's going to take a little while for us to realize how big this is. You're talking about negligence, you're talking about harm, psychological devastation of people and that sort of thing. So you can put theoretically any figure on it," Kitchen said.
"It might be a bad thing for victims," said Stephen Parisi, former Christ the King dean of seminarians.
Parisi, critical of the diocese, stepped down late last week as dean of Christ the King.
Parisi said over the weekend while he's unsure how the diocese will financially position itself, he's calling on parishioners to send a stronger message.
"If people genuinely want some change in this diocese, stop putting money in the collection baskets. Stop, please for the love of God," Parisi said.
Kitchen said it could take several years for the court to resolve the matters.
"Once all these claims are in, it's in a position to perhaps supervise some sort of negotiation or reorganization that would assist the institution from dealing with these huge debts," he said.
In addition to the diocese and Boy Scouts, additional claims are expected to be filed against Erie County's Department of Social Services in the coming weeks.