New York Archdiocese Settles Abuse Claims for $800 Million
About 1,300 survivors gain a path to redress; Archbishop Hicks calls the deal a step toward healing and reconciliation.
The Archdiocese of New York and attorneys for approximately 1,300 people alleging sexual abuse by clergy have agreed to an $800 million settlement. It is the second-largest such agreement involving a U.S. Catholic archdiocese, after the Archdiocese of Los Angeles’s $880 million deal.
Reached in October 2026, the settlement resolves more than seven years of litigation under New York’s Child Victims Act, which extended the statute of limitations and allowed survivors to bring claims previously barred by time. Formal signing is scheduled for the week of November 6.
Terms of the Deal
The arrangement allows the archdiocese to avoid bankruptcy and to refocus on its mission, according to archdiocesan leadership.
Healing, Reconciliation, and Justice
Archbishop Hicks wrote in an email: “We are on the verge of being able, please God, bring some measure of healing and reconciliation to all victim-survivors.”
Attorney Jeff Anderson, counsel for survivors, called the outcome “a powerful moment in the pursuit of justice.”
The Child Victims Act reopened New York courts to older childhood sexual abuse claims. Over more than seven years, that change produced a substantial docket against the Archdiocese of New York.
With signing set for the week of November 6, the archdiocese and plaintiffs’ attorneys move from prolonged litigation toward payments offered as redress for victim-survivors and, in the archbishop’s words, a measure of healing and reconciliation.