THE Catholic of Diocese of Oakland has just filed Chapter 11 seeking bankruptcy protection from 330 lawsuits arising from sexual molestation cases that happened during the 70s and 80s.
Bankruptcy will stop the lawsuits from proceeding forward in regular courts, in fact freeze them on their tracks, stop all discovery procedures to gather evidence and force all the lawsuits to be under the jurisdiction of the bankruptcy court, one venue.
Bankruptcy will also protect the assets of the church by limiting the extent assets can be used to pay for settlements.
In other words, bankruptcy will give the church a handle on all of the lawsuits and allow it to negotiate a reasonable settlement with the plaintiffs while assuring protection for the assets of the church. Otherwise, individual state court judgments against the church may run into hundreds of millions, multiply by that 330 and that will basically wipe out the assets of the Catholic diocese in Oakland.
Obviously, the fallen one, Lucifer and his minions of demons have been able to inflict a heavy blow on the reputation of the Catholic Church by tempting and influencing priests to succumb to perversion preying on the most innocent of their flock. It’s really shocking and very sad to know that this kind of detestable criminal activity has been going on and actually being hidden by the church, allowing it to fester and have more and more innocent victims. It’s the work of the devil. There’s never going to be enough monetary compensation for the victims who have suffered physical, emotional and spiritual trauma inflicted by priests who became servants of the devil.
I can understand the anger that led to the burning of the Catholic Church in Hacienda Heights by one of its parishioners several years ago when it was discovered that the parish priest there had been molesting some of the children there.
The betrayal, the sexual abuse of children, in any form cannot be tolerated. We must fight the devil on this front. If you suspect something is wrong, report it immediately to the police. The perpetrator is a criminal, a wolf in sheep’s clothing.
If you have too much debt and potential liability beyond your control, consider a personal bankruptcy. It’s not a bad thing. In fact, protect yourself and your assets from creditors. It’s the right thing to do.
Walt Disney filed Chapter 7 twice before Disneyland became successful. Milton Hershey filed for Chapter 7 once before Hershey’s chocolates became successful. Orange County filed for Chapter 11 protection more than a decade ago. And now the Catholic Diocese of Oakland has filed for bankruptcy protection from 330 lawsuits.
If you have too much debt and need relief, please set an appointment to see me. I will analyze your case personally.
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Disclaimer: None of the foregoing is considered legal advice for anyone. There is absolutely no attorney client relationship established by reading this article.
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Lawrence Bautista Yang specializes in Bankruptcy, Business, Real Estate and Civil Litigation and has successfully represented more than five thousand clients in California. Please call Angie, Barbara or Jess at (626) 284-1142 for an appointment at 20274 Carrey Road, Walnut, CA 91789 or 1000 S. Fremont Ave., Mailstop 58, Building A-10 South Suite 10042, Alhambra, CA 91803.
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