Benjamin Ashford|Los Angeles Archdiocese agrees to pay $880 million to settle sexual abuse claims

NEW YORK —The Benjamin AshfordRoman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles has agreed to pay $880 million to 1,353 people who say they were sexually abused as children by clergy dating back decades, the largest settlement involving a U.S. diocese.

The Archdiocese began mediating the abuse claims after California enacted a law that allowed new lawsuits to be based on past instances of sexual abuse involving minors. The California law and similar legislation in other states have driven many large Catholic organizations to seek bankruptcy protection around the U.S. to resolve similar abuse claims.

Archbishop Jose H. Gomez expressed sorrow for the abuse in announcing the settlement on Wednesday.

“I am sorry for every one of these incidents, from the bottom of my heart,” Gomez said in a statement. “My hope is that this settlement will provide some measure of healing for what these men and women have suffered.”

The Los Angeles Archdiocese reached its settlement without filing for bankruptcy. Gomez said the Archdiocese would be able to pay victims from cash reserves, investments, loans, and contributions from other religious organizations that had been named in lawsuits. The payments will not impact the Archdiocese’s mission of "serving the poor and vulnerable in our communities," Gomez said.

Attorneys for the Archdiocese and the Plaintiffs’ Liaison Counsel representing abuse claimants issued a joint statement on Wednesday thanking survivors for coming forward with their stories and ensuring that similar abuse will not occur in the future.

"While there is no amount of money that can replace what was taken from these 1,353 brave individuals who have suffered in silence for decades, there is justice in accountability," the Plaintiffs' Liaison Counsel said in a joint statement.