Church Lawsuit News: Diocese Settlements, LDS, and Gateway

Church lawsuit news in 2025 and 2026 is dominated by three storylines: Catholic dioceses negotiating record-breaking abuse settlements and bankruptcies, a wave of new civil suits made possible by state laws reviving expired claims, and criminal cases and jury verdicts reaching leaders and institutions across denominations. What follows is a plain summary of the biggest active matters and the legal shifts driving them.

Catholic Dioceses Post the Largest Settlements

The Catholic Church continues to account for the biggest dollar figures. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops reported that dioceses paid roughly $389.9 million in abuse-related costs between July 2024 and June 2025, a 61 percent jump over the prior year, with settlement payments alone up 69 percent.1EWTN News. U.S. Bishops Report Shows Slight Rise in Abuse Claims as Settlement Amounts Surge

Recent headline settlements include:

Archdiocese of New York’s $800 Million Proposal

The Archdiocese of New York proposed an $800 million settlement in May 2026 to resolve roughly 1,300 claims filed under the state’s Child Victims Act.4NCR Online. Archdiocese of New York Proposes $800 Million Settlement for Abuse Claims The terms include an initial payment near $615 million, with $185 million to follow within about 15 months, and a requirement that the archdiocese publish a list of clergy with credible abuse allegations.5NY1. Catholic Archdiocese Clergy Abuse Settlement

The deal is not final. Survivors’ attorneys have warned that any significant number of holdouts could collapse the settlement and push the archdiocese into Chapter 11. Archbishop Ronald Hicks, who succeeded Cardinal Timothy Dolan in February 2026, said he is “cautiously optimistic” but noted “much work remains.”4NCR Online. Archdiocese of New York Proposes $800 Million Settlement for Abuse Claims An insurance dispute with Chubb over coverage responsibility is also unresolved.6Sokolove Law. New York Archdiocese Sexual Abuse Lawsuits

Baltimore Bankruptcy Nearing Confirmation

The Archdiocese of Baltimore filed for Chapter 11 on September 29, 2023, days before Maryland’s Child Victims Act took effect. A state investigation had documented 80 years of abuse involving more than 150 priests and over 600 children.7SNAP Network. Maryland’s Highest Court Upholds Ending Statute of Limitations on Child Sex Abuse Lawsuits As of June 2026, the archdiocese has proposed a second revised reorganization plan totaling $246 million, drawn from $43.9 million from the archdiocese, $185 million from insurers, and $17.1 million from parishes and affiliated entities. The Unsecured Creditors Committee counter-plan seeks $441.3 million from Catholic entities plus at least $100 million from a single insurer. Judge Michelle Harner aims to confirm a plan by September 29, 2026, with a confirmation trial set for September 14.8Catholic Review. New Plan, Other Developments Move Forward in Archdiocesan Bankruptcy Process

Why So Many Cases Now: Statute of Limitations Reform

New civil suits keep landing because more states have reopened the door. By mid-2026, 20 states, two U.S. territories, and the federal government have eliminated civil statutes of limitations for at least some childhood sexual abuse claims, and 30 states have enacted lookback or revival windows allowing survivors to file previously time-barred suits.9Enough Abuse. What Is the Statute of Limitations on Child Sexual Abuse

Maryland’s 2023 law eliminated the civil limitations period entirely for child sexual abuse. In February 2025, the Maryland Supreme Court upheld the law 4-3, with Chief Justice Matthew Fader writing that the running of a statute of limitations does not create a “vested right to be free from liability.”7SNAP Network. Maryland’s Highest Court Upholds Ending Statute of Limitations on Child Sex Abuse Lawsuits State high courts remain divided on retroactive revival: Maine, New Hampshire, Utah, and Kentucky have struck it down as a violation of defendants’ vested rights, while Georgia, Vermont, North Carolina, and Louisiana have allowed it.10State Court Report. State High Courts Split on Laws Letting Survivors of Sexual Abuse Sue After Statutes of Limitations Expire

Rhode Island is the newest addition. Governor Dan McKee signed a bill creating a two-year revival window from July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2028 for previously time-barred claims against institutions that allegedly enabled or concealed abuse; the Senate vote was 37-0.11Rhode Island Current. RI Senate Approves Bill Reviving Expired Clergy Abuse Lawsuits Senator Chuck Schumer introduced a federal bill in February 2026 that would eliminate limitations periods for civil suits involving sex trafficking and sexual abuse.9Enough Abuse. What Is the Statute of Limitations on Child Sexual Abuse

Gateway Church Founder Robert Morris Convicted

Robert Morris, the 64-year-old founder of Gateway Church in Southlake, Texas, pleaded guilty in October 2025 to five counts of lewd or indecent acts with a child in Oklahoma.12Oklahoma Attorney General. Megachurch Founder Pleads Guilty to Child Sex Abuse Charges The charges stemmed from abuse that began in 1982 when Cindy Clemishire was 12 years old and Morris, then a traveling evangelist, was staying with her family in Hominy, Oklahoma. The abuse continued for more than four years.13NBC News. Robert Morris Gateway Church Lawyer Letters Cindy Clemishire

Morris received a 10-year suspended sentence, served six months in the Osage County Jail, and was released on March 31, 2026. He must register as a sex offender for life and pay restitution to Clemishire.14CNN. Pastor Robert Morris Jail Release Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond called the case “all the more despicable because the perpetrator was a pastor who exploited his position of trust and authority.”12Oklahoma Attorney General. Megachurch Founder Pleads Guilty to Child Sex Abuse Charges

Morris resigned as Gateway’s senior pastor in June 2024 after the allegations became public. Church leaders initially framed the matter as “a moral failure he had over 35 years ago” but later acknowledged they had not known the victim was a child, and four church officials, including Morris’s son James, took leaves of absence from the board of elders.13NBC News. Robert Morris Gateway Church Lawyer Letters Cindy Clemishire Clemishire and her father have filed a civil suit in Dallas County against Morris, his wife Deborah, Gateway Church, and several current and former church leaders, alleging defamation, conspiracy, and intentional infliction of emotional distress, and claiming the church knowingly concealed that Clemishire was a child when the abuse began.15Ministry Watch. Clemishire Files Civil Lawsuit Against Robert Morris, Gateway Church

Southern Baptist Convention: Reforms Stalled, Legal Bills Mounting

The Department of Justice closed its investigation of the Southern Baptist Convention and its Executive Committee in March 2025 without further charges.16Christianity Today. Southern Baptist DOJ Investigation Abuse Ends The “Ministry Check” abuser database that SBC messengers voted to create in 2022 still contains no names. The reform task force was disbanded in 2024, and Executive Committee president Jeff Iorg said in early 2025 that the database is “not a focus for us.”17Christianity Today. Southern Baptist Abuse Database Pastors

The SBC has spent over $2 million on the DOJ investigation and more than $3 million defending lawsuits filed by former leaders named in the 2022 Guidepost Solutions report, and planned to sell its Nashville headquarters to help cover the costs.16Christianity Today. Southern Baptist DOJ Investigation Abuse Ends Among pending cases is a $100 million suit by former SBC President Johnny Hunt against the SBC and Guidepost.18Baptist News Global. What Happened to the SBC’s Vision 2025 and Its $1.25 Million Messengers approved a $3 million budget line for ongoing legal expenses.19The Oklahoman. Southern Baptist Convention Sexual Abuse Database Reforms

LDS Church: Abuse Settlements, Insurance Fight, Tithing Suits

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints agreed in principle in May 2025 to settle more than 100 sexual abuse lawsuits filed in California under AB 218, that state’s revival window law. The terms have not been publicly disclosed. Suits allege grooming and abuse by church leaders dating to the 1960s, and reports have accused officials of routing abuse allegations through an internal “help line” to the church’s law firm rather than to law enforcement.20Sokolove Law. Mormon Church Sexual Abuse Lawsuits

The church is separately fighting its own insurers at the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals over a $32 million settlement involving abuse of seven children by church member Michael Jensen. Total costs approach $60 million after defense expenses. The central question is whether abuse of multiple children constitutes a single “occurrence” under the policies, which would push coverage above combined policy limits, or multiple separate occurrences that keep each below the threshold. A lower court ruled for the insurers; the 10th Circuit heard oral argument in May 2026 without ruling.21SNAP Network. Mormon Church Battles Insurers Over Sex Abuse Settlement Coverage at 10th Circuit

On the financial side, the church faces active lawsuits over how tithing donations have been used. The litigation followed a 2019 whistleblower complaint by former Ensign Peak Advisors portfolio manager David Nielsen. In February 2023, the SEC fined Ensign Peak $4 million and the church $1 million for using 13 shell companies over two decades to obscure the size of the church’s equity portfolio, which reached roughly $32 billion by 2018.22SEC. SEC Charges Ensign Peak Advisors and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Two civil tithing suits remain active: an October 2023 Utah case brought by three members claiming $350,000 in misused donations, and a California case by Gene and Michelle Judson over roughly $40,000 paid between 2003 and 2020. The church maintains it does not use tithing principal for commercial projects, drawing instead on investment earnings.23ABC4. LDS Church Faces Third Lawsuit Over Alleged Tithing Misuse

Delbarton School: First New Jersey Clergy Abuse Jury Verdict

In October 2025, a New Jersey jury awarded $5 million to a 65-year-old former student of Delbarton School, a Benedictine prep school in Morristown. It is the first clergy sexual abuse case to reach a jury verdict in New Jersey under the state’s 2019 Child Victims Act.24NJ.com. Jury Awards $5 Million to Delbarton School Sexual Abuse Survivor in Historic Verdict The plaintiff alleged that the Rev. Richard Lott, then a monk and chemistry teacher, assaulted him on New Year’s Eve 1975. The jury found the Order of St. Benedict of New Jersey 65 percent liable and Lott 35 percent liable.25SNAP Network. NJ Judge Denies Delbarton School’s Bid for Retrial in Sex Abuse Case

Trial evidence included a 2018 deposition from the late Abbot Brian Clarke, who admitted destroying a 1977 letter in which the plaintiff had reported the assault, citing the school’s reputation. The jury declined to add punitive damages.26NBC News. Jury Spares Delbarton School From Paying Punitive Damages in Sex Abuse Case On December 29, 2025, a judge denied Delbarton’s motion for a new trial, calling the verdict “fair and well-reasoned.” Dozens of additional abuse cases against the school remain pending.25SNAP Network. NJ Judge Denies Delbarton School’s Bid for Retrial in Sex Abuse Case

Chapelstreet Church Sued Over Alleged Youth Leader Abuse

Chapelstreet Church, formerly First Baptist Church of Geneva, Illinois, was sued in October 2025 by a plaintiff identified as “John Doe,” now 21, who alleges he was repeatedly abused by youth leader Don Vanthournout between 2011 and 2018 while living at Vanthournout’s home.27Chicago Sun-Times. Chapelstreet Church Geneva Evangelical Sexual Abuse The suit claims a separate individual warned then-interim lead pastor Brian Coffey in 2010 about Vanthournout’s history of child sexual abuse and asked that he be removed from working with teenage boys. According to the complaint, Coffey wrote that he intended to “keep Don out of student ministries” and handle the matter confidentially, but Vanthournout kept access to minors.28Ministry Watch. Chicago Area Megachurch Sued in Sexual Abuse Case The church has denied the allegations, saying it was “inappropriately included in this legal action” and that Vanthournout was not acting under its authority, and said it “intends to vigorously defend itself.”

Rock Church Settlement Over Mandated Reporting

Church liability is not limited to acts by clergy. The Rock Church in San Diego agreed to a $3 million settlement over the death of 11-year-old Arabella McCormack, whose adoptive family allegedly starved and abused the children in their care. The lawsuit alleged that a church member reported suspected abuse to a church leader who failed to notify authorities under mandated-reporter laws. The City of San Diego faces a $10 million settlement awaiting city council approval, and Pacific Coast Academy settled for $8.5 million, both over similar reporting failures.29NBC San Diego. City of San Diego and Rock Church Settle for Millions Over Adopted Girl’s Death

How Courts Hold Churches Liable

The legal theories that let survivors sue churches, not just individual abusers, have taken shape over decades. The most common is negligent supervision: a church knew or should have known about a risk and failed to take reasonable steps to protect children. Courts have consistently rejected First Amendment defenses to such claims, separating internal religious governance from the duty not to harm third parties. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court in one landmark ruling found a church acted with “reckless and abhorrent” negligence by ignoring a pastor’s known history of pedophilic behavior; Colorado and New York courts have reached similar conclusions.

Related claims include negligent hiring, when a church fails to screen personnel, and negligent retention, when a church keeps someone in a position of trust after learning of misconduct. Some jurisdictions also recognize a breach of fiduciary duty between a church and the children of its congregants.