San Diego, Calif., Sep 10, 2007 / 08:20 am
The Diocese of San Diego came to a $198.1-million settlement with 144 alleged victims of sexual abuse by priests and church staff. The average payout will be $1.38 million per person making it the second largest payout to date. The diocese and its insurance carrier, Catholic Mutual, will pay the bulk.
The settlement was announced Friday morning, after an eight-hour marathon mediation session the day before.
Lawyers for the plaintiffs locked horns in a federal courtroom on Thursday, arguing among each other over what their clients should receive, reported the Union-Tribune.
Magistrate Judge Leo Papas, who has led the mediation sessions since June, sent the lawyers home to sleep on it. They returned at 8:30 a.m. on Friday and hammered out the remaining details by 11:30 a.m.