WINONA, Minn. –A federal bankruptcy judge has approved the Catholic Diocese of Winona-Rochester agreement with survivors of sexual abuse at the hands of priests and ither church workers. The $22 million deal, which forced the diocese into bankruptcy, will yield $1.5 million to each survivor. Bishop John Quinn said that he has yet to receive the final paperwork but that he’s been assured that the bankruptcy judge has signed off on the deal. The church is liquidating $16 million in assets to establish the trust fund from which survivors will be paid. Another $6 million for the trust is coming from insurance companies with which the diocese had long-term protection against legal claims. The 76-page bankruptcy agreement does not list the assets being sold, which protects the diocese’s traditional secrecy about details of its property holdings and investments.
