Attorney Irwin Zalkin on Archbishop Timothy Dolan:  Friend or Foe of Sex Abuse Victims?

New York (February 26, 2009) – The city is abuzz over Archbishop Timothy Dolan, the newly appointed Archbishop of the New York Archdiocese. In particular, concerns have been raised over how Dolan will treat victims of sexual abuse.

Attorney Irwin Zalkin has secured settlements in excess of $200 million dollars representing hundreds of victims of childhood sexual abuse against various Catholic Diocese and institutions around the country, including victims of the Milwaukee Archdiocese, Dolan’s previous post.  Just recently, Zalkin negotiated with Archbishop Dolan to successfully settle the case of an abuse victim of Father Siegfried Widera, a notorious serial pedophile who, after allegations of abuse were made against him, was transferred by the Milwaukee Diocese to the California Diocese where he proceeded to abuse at least another 10 victims.

Zalkin offers these insights about Archbishop Dolan:

“As the new Archbishop of New York – an obviously high-profile and coveted position in the Catholic Church – Archbishop Dolan will not be able to escape the intense local and national scrutiny over his treatment of sexual abuse victims.”

“Although Archbishop Dolan has publicly expressed his resentment of sexual predator clergy, in reality he has not been particularly helpful or understanding of victims.  In our client’s case and many others we are familiar with, rather than reach out to victims, Archbishop Dolan and his lawyers raised every legal technical defense and sought to avoid compensating victims for the terrible harm done.”

“While the jury is still out, I fear that for victims, nothing will change.”

With offices in New York and San Diego, The Zalkin Law Firm is one of the premier sexual abuse and personal injury law firms in the country.  The firm's lawyers have achieved groundbreaking results in numerous high-profile clergy abuse cases across the United States.