Case Doc 344 Filed 08/27/15 Entered 08/27/15 09:17:35 Desc Main Document Page 1 of 6 UNITED STATES BANKRUPTCY COURT DISTRICT OF MINNESOTA

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1 Document Page 1 of 6 UNITED STATES BANKRUPTCY COURT DISTRICT OF MINNESOTA In Re: Chapter 11 Bankruptcy No The Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis, Debtor JOINDER OF THE PARISH GROUP TO THE PARISH COMMITTEE S MOTION TO EXPAND ACCESS TO PROOFS OF CLAIM FILED BY ABUSE CLAIMANTS FOR CERTAIN PARISHES POTENTIALLY AFFECTED BY CLAIMS (DOC. NO. 338) Mary Jo A. Jensen-Carter, attorney for the Parish Group, a group of parishes located in the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis, hereby files this response in support of the Parish Committee s motion to expand access to proofs of claims to the parishes and their representatives. 1. The court will hold a hearing on this motion at 10:30 a.m. on Thursday, September 3, 2015, before the Honorable Robert J. Kressel, Judge of U.S. Bankruptcy Court, in Courtroom 8W, U. S. Courthouse, 300 South Fourth Street, Minneapolis, MN As noted in the Parish Committee s motion the Court s previous orders have restricted access to the proofs of claim filed by clergy abuse victims in an effort to protect the identities of the victims. At the present time, the members of the Parish Group and their counsel are not deemed Permitted Parties under the terms of those orders. As a result, despite the fact that numerous clergy abuse victims have filed claims which potentially affect members of the Parish Group, the Parish Group has no

2 Document Page 2 of 6 access to the information contained in the proofs of claim. In an effort to correct this deficiency, the Parish Committee filed a motion to extend access to the proofs of claim to the parishes which may be affected by the claims. The Parish Group supports the motion and asks that the Court grant the relief requested in the motion. 3. The Parish Group believes that Parish Committee s proposed expansion of the Permitted Parties, is appropriate and provides the clergy abuse victims with as much privacy as possible, while still allowing parishes the opportunity to make informed decisions with respect to the handling of the clergy abuse claims. The parish representatives and attorneys will be required to sign the same Confidentiality Agreement that all other Permitted Parties have signed prior to gaining access to the proofs of claim. As a result, they will be willingly bound by the same restrictions as all parties who currently have access to the proofs of claim. 4. It should be noted that the parishes and their counsel already have access, other than through filed proofs of claim, to information related to some of the clergy abuse claims. The parishes initially became involved in this proceeding after having been sent Notices of Claims generated by Jeffrey Anderson s office related to claims against their parishes. Those notices identified the claimants and provided background related to those claims. As a result, information related to over 100 claims has already been voluntarily provided to the parishes by Mr. Anderson s office, without any restrictions. The parishes have, of course, treated that information confidentially, providing it only to necessary parties. There has been no indication that the parishes have mishandled that information, and there is no reason to assume that the parishes will not handle the information in the proofs of claim in the same

3 Document Page 3 of 6 manner. 5. The expansion of the Permitted Parties as suggested by the Parish Committee will merely grant access to the proofs of claim to necessary parish representatives. For the purposes of this Chapter 11 bankruptcy case, the Archdiocese s representatives on the board have recused themselves, resulting in each parish being governed by a three member board consisting of the pastor and two lay trustees. Under Canon Law, the pastor is also required to consult with the parish Finance Committee with respect to financial matters. As a result, it is imperative that the pastor and trustees, as board members, as well as representatives of the finance committee, be allowed access to claims that implicate their parishes. It should be noted that pastors generally serve only a few years at each parish. As a result, it is the lay people in the parish who will need to be involved in the investigation of these claims, as the pastor will likely not have been at the parish during the incidents in question and may not be there when decisions on these issues need to be made. It is imperative that individuals governing the parish be involved in the process of analyzing the claims against the parish so that they can cooperate with their insurers and make informed decisions on behalf of the parish. 6. In light of the legal issues involved, the parish representatives will also need the opportunity to consult with their individual counsel with respect to the claims. As a result, it is also necessary for parish counsel to have access to the claims which affect their clients. 7. If any of these parties is denied access to the claims, the parishes will not be in a position to cooperate with their insurers and make informed decisions related to the

4 Document Page 4 of 6 resolution of the claims. If they are denied this information, it will be impossible for them to meaningfully participate in the ongoing mediation proceeding. 8. It was at the request of the mediator, the Archdiocese and the Unsecured Creditors Committee, that members of the Parish Group and other parishes voluntarily agreed to participate in the court ordered mediation proceeding. All of the other parties to the mediation proceeding, including insurers for the Archdiocese and the parishes, have been granted access to the clergy abuse proofs of claim, yet that access is currently denied to the parishes. The parishes need, and are entitled to, access to the proofs of claim which may affect their parishes. To deny the parish representatives and attorneys access to the claims affecting them places them in an untenable position in the mediation. They simply cannot participate in a process in which other parties are privy to information that they do not have. As a result, if the parish representatives are not granted appropriate access to the proofs of claim, the members of the Parish Group will likely have to consider withdrawing from the mediation proceeding. 9. As noted by this court in a previous hearing, the parishes have done their part to move this case forward by voluntarily cooperating with the court s request that they disseminate notice of the bar date in this bankruptcy case in their parishes. They have also spent substantial time and effort participating in the mediation proceeding. The members of the Parish Group want to continue to cooperate in this case and obtain a fair resolution for everyone involved. However, they must be treated fairly and granted full access to the claims against them to justify continuing participation in the mediation proceeding.

5 Document Page 5 of 6 WHEREFORE, the Parish Group respectfully requests that the Court grant the Parish Committee s motion in its entirety. BUCKLEY & JENSEN Dated: August 27, 2015 /e Mary Jo A. Jensen-Carter Mary Jo A. Jensen-Carter, Gun Club Road White Bear Lake, MN Attorneys for Parish Group

6 Document Page 6 of 6 UNITED STATES BANKRUPTCY COURT DISTRICT OF MINNESOTA In Re: Chapter 11 The Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis, Bankruptcy No Debtor UNSWORN CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE I, Ann M. Gagner, declare under penalty of perjury that on August 27, 2015, I served the following: JOINDER OF THE PARISH GROUP TO THE PARISH COMMITTEE S MOTION TO EXPAND ACCESS TO PROOFS OF CLAIM FILED BY ABUSE CLAIMANTS FOR CERTAIN PARISHES POTENTIALLY AFFECTED BY CLAIMS (DOC. NO. 338) by sending true and correct copies via ECF to the parties receiving ECF notice in this case. Dated: August 27, 2015 /e/ Ann M. Gagner Ann M. Gagner Buckley & Jensen 1257 Gun Club Road White Bear Lake, MN 55110