As the Archdiocese of Baltimore’s bankruptcy begins to work its way through the legal system, court officials have selected a group of sexual abuse victims who, with an assist from several attorneys, will eventually negotiate settlement terms for the hundreds of fellow survivors.

Known as an unsecured creditors committee, the seven victims will play a key role throughout the archdiocese’s bankruptcy — a process that is expected to last years.

In a typical bankruptcy, meaning one that is not based around allegations of sexual assault and child abuse, such a committee is composed of people or financial institutions who hold liens or have outstanding invoices against the debtor. They’re in line behind secured creditors, who have collateral such as real estate. Unsecured creditors sometimes get as little as pennies on the dollar for what they’re owed.

But in cases where the debt and debtor’s financial peril is almost solely based on sexual abuse, the committee’s efforts will be central.

“They are the decision-makers,” said attorney Jonathan Schochor, who represents one of the committee members.

Who is on the committee?

The committee is made up of six men and one woman who each say they’ve suffered abuse by employees of the Archdiocese of Baltimore. They are Carl Bart Jr., Robert Hammond, Joseph Martin Jr., Joseph Otterbein, Jonathan Salamone, Rebecca Williams and Paul Jan Zdunek.

While The Baltimore Sun does not name people who say they’ve suffered from sexual abuse without their permission, a requirement for serving on the committee is agreeing to be publicly identified. Others people who submit a claim in bankruptcy cases involving allegations of sexual abuse can elect to remain anonymous, meaning their identities are not divulged and the contents of their claim are not released.

Zdunek, who says he experienced abuse by a lay teacher in the Archdiocese of Baltimore, in a church-affiliated men and boy’s choir, and in the Boy Scouts of America, will serve as committee chair for the case in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Baltimore.

An officer of the U.S. Department of Justice, known in the bankruptcy process as the U.S. Trustee, selected the seven from a group of people who applied. Potential members answered a series of questions about their abuse, their history with the archdiocese and whether they received a settlement previously, according to attorneys involved in the interview process.

“The question of how do they make that decision is a bit unknown and is unique to each trustee involved,” said attorney Ryan Perlin, who represents two committee members. “That happens behind closed doors and we’re not privy to the selection criteria.”

Decision-making power

Known also as a “survivors’ committee,” it will serve as a fiduciary for the hundreds, if not thousands, of diocese abuse victims. The seven members have to act in the best interest of every victim, not just themselves. As the bankruptcy process plays out, they will be tasked with a series of important decisions.

“The best way to think about it is the survivors’ committee is the client of the lawyers representing all survivors in this case,” Perlin said. “They will make decisions about how to proceed, just like any other client.”

First among them is the decision to retain and hire a law firm to represent the committee as a whole going forward. The committee has interviewed candidates for that role. The next step likely will involve hiring experts and other attorneys. The committee will investigate the archdiocese’s assets and insurance policies and can argue whether the church is being forthright in its representations to the court.

“Those assets have to be disentangled and we’re going to need experts to do this,” Schochor said.

Any legal fees for the bankruptcy counsel, experts or other attorneys will be paid out of the archdiocese’s assets. Because the committee is a party to the bankruptcy, it will have the ability to challenge the archdiocese’s court filings in legal papers of its own.

Negotiating a settlement

Most importantly, the committee will get to negotiate the final settlement from the church for survivors.

When that time comes, likely more than a year from now, the archdiocese will present its plan to exit the Chapter 11 bankruptcy process. The committee, with advice from its attorneys, will have the opportunity to object to that plan and to present one of its own.

“After some painstaking legal work and emotional trauma, we may get a plan that’s acceptable,” Schochor said.

Settlements in other diocesan bankruptcies have varied. The Milwaukee diocese’s settlement, $21 million split among 330 claimants, is on the low end. The Diocese of Camden, New Jersey, settled its bankruptcy for $87.5 million with fewer victims.

Perlin said there also will be an opportunity for the committee to push for changes in how the Archdiocese of Baltimore handles future abuse cases and in how it moves priests accused of abuse. And it could advocate for changes to the archdiocese’s Independent Review Board — a group of people appointed by the archbishop that determines whether the church considers an abuse allegation credible.