Andy Freeman, partner at Brown, Goldstein & Levy, told The Baltimore Banner that as of Wednesday morning, May 29, more than 485 people have filed a claim against the Archdiocese of Baltimore for child sexual abuse committed by priests, teachers, and others associated with the Archdiocese. The deadline for child sexual abuse survivors to submit their claim in the Archdiocese of Baltimore’s bankruptcy case is the end of the day on Friday, May 31.
“We’re doing everything we can just to get word out to survivors,” Andy said to The Banner. “Even if you’re not completely comfortable, you can file these claims confidentially. No one else has to know. But you have to file your claim by Friday if you were abused by a priest or someone associated with the Archdiocese of Baltimore.”
Andy predicted that there will be between 500 and 1,000 claims filed in the case. The final number of submitted claims will not immediately be known.
In order to be eligible for compensation from the Archdiocese, survivors must submit a claim by May 31. That claim can be filed confidentially on a simple form, with additional details (also confidential) filed later. Although Maryland recently eliminated the statute of limitations on filing claims for childhood sexual abuse, there is a deadline for filing claims in the bankruptcy court, after which past claims against the Archdiocese of Baltimore will be barred.
After May 31, the Church’s bankruptcy case will proceed to a second phase, in which assets available to be distributed to the claimants, including insurance policies, will be identified and the relative values of the claims will be evaluated. Andy and Brown, Goldstein & Levy represent Paul Jan Zdunek, the chairman of the Creditors’ Committee – the seven survivors who represent the interests of all of the survivor-claimants in the bankruptcy case.
“At the end of the day, we are looking forward to obtaining justice for survivors of abuse by clergy and other people related to the church,” Andy said in a 2023 article by The Baltimore Sun. “We will eventually find all the assets and do our best to compensate survivors for the egregious treatment they received at the hands of the church.”
Navigating the claims process and recounting the trauma of sexual abuse can be difficult and overwhelming, but the attorneys at Brown, Goldstein & Levy are here to help. We have vast experience litigating difficult sexual assault cases and have won million-dollar and multi-million-dollar verdicts and settlements in favor of survivors. We are currently representing scores of survivors with claims against the Archdiocese of Baltimore (including clients who signed releases with the Archdiocese in the past), the Archdiocese of Washington, the Maryland Department of Juvenile Services, numerous private and public schools, and other institutions.
If you believe you have a claim of sexual abuse against the Archdiocese of Baltimore, do not hesitate to contact us for a confidential consultation – but please do so as soon as possible.
ABOUT ANDREW FREEMAN
Andy Freeman
obtains justice for his clients. He has won numerous verdicts, judgments, and settlements of millions, tens of millions, and in one case over a billion dollars by mastering the relevant law and getting to know his clients, their problems, and the evidence in their cases. In one case, Andy won a verdict of $15 million for a survivor of child sexual abuse. In another trial, he secured a $1 million verdict in a counter-suit on behalf of a girl who was sexually abused by a lawyer, after the lawyer-abuser sued for defamation—a result that was recognized by the National Law Journal as one of the “Top Wins of 2000.” Andy has long been a tenacious advocate for the wellbeing of children, both inside and outside of court. He has served as a board member and board president of the Family Tree (formerly the Child Abuse Prevention Center of Maryland) and of the Family League of Baltimore City, and as a board member for Safe and Sound: Baltimore’s Campaign for Children, Youth and Families. Andy was also a volunteer with the Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) of Baltimore, a nonprofit that fights for the best interests of abused and neglected children involved in Baltimore’s foster care system, which awarded him multiple CASA Recognition Awards, and he and his wife (the former Executive Director of the Baltimore Child Abuse Center) were Baltimore City foster parents.
Founded in 1982, Brown, Goldstein & Levy is a law firm based in Baltimore, Maryland, with an office in Washington, D.C. The firm is nationally recognized in a wide variety of practice areas, including complex civil and commercial litigation, civil rights, health care, family law, and criminal defense. Above all else, Brown, Goldstein & Levy is a client-centered law firm that brings decades of experience and passionate, effective advocacy to your fight for justice.