$880 million for sexual abuse victims from Los Angeles Archdiocese

LOS ANGELES, California: Victims of sexual abuse by clergy dating back decades will be paid US$880 million by the Los Angeles Archdiocese as the largest single child sex abuse settlement this week.

After the announcement of the agreement in principle, Archbishop Jose H. Gomez said in a statement, "I am sorry for every one of these incidents, from the bottom of my heart."

The Los Angeles Times reported that attorneys for 1,353 people who allegedly suffered horrific abuse by local Catholic priests settled after months of negotiations with the archdiocese.

The agreement caps a quarter-century litigation against the most populous archdiocese in the United States.

Under the settlement, the plaintiffs will engage in a process- that will not involve the archdiocese - to allocate the settlement amount among the participants.

The Times said the archdiocese has previously paid $740 million to victims in various settlements, putting the total payout at more than $1.5 billion.

Attorney Morgan Stewart, who led the negotiations, said that the settlement is the largest single child sex abuse settlement with a Catholic archdiocese.

Archdiocese investments, accumulated reserves, bank financing, and other assets will fund the settlement.