Archbishop Ronald Hicks confirmed the agreement in a Saturday email to clergy, saying it will resolve all outstanding claims brought under the Child Victims Act against the archdiocese, its parishes and affiliated agencies.

The deal will not be final until both parties sign it, an action scheduled for the week of November 6.

The settlement is the second-largest involving a Catholic archdiocese in the United States, surpassed only by the Archdiocese of Los Angeles's $880 million agreement in 2024 to 1,000 victims, which came on top of $740 million it had previously paid.

Other major deals include San Francisco's $395 million settlement in June over about 500 lawsuits and New Orleans's court-approved agreement in December 2025 to pay at least $230 million.

The New York accord ends more than seven years of litigation and avoids a bankruptcy that lawyers warned would shrink payouts.

Attorney Jeff Anderson, whose firm represents people who filed more than 1,000 claims against the Catholic Church in New York state, called the unanimous agreement of survivors 'a powerful moment in the pursuit of justice,' saying survivors have helped bring about a reckoning and a meaningful step toward accountability.

His colleague Trusha Goffe called it 'an extraordinary achievement,' noting survivors remained resolute through years of litigation. Attorney Paul Mones, who represents some plaintiffs, told The Guardian the deal gives closure to people in their 60s, 70s and even 80s who were terribly wronged.

The claims became possible under a New York law enacted in 2019, the Child Victims Act, which lets survivors of child sexual abuse sue abusers and institutions that shielded them until they turn 55, with older survivors given until August 2021 to file.

Thousands sued, and the archdiocese began mediation in December 2025 over 1,300 claims, laying off staff and planning to sell Manhattan properties to raise $300 million, according to NPR.

According to Reuters via The Jerusalem Post, the archdiocese also agreed to release documents pertaining to sexual offenders in the Church, and the settlement allows survivors to litigate against the Church's insurers for additional payouts while avoiding a bankruptcy by the archdiocese.

Archbishop Hicks told clergy the agreement would let the archdiocese return its full attention to its mission of preaching the Gospel, caring for the poor and educating children. The archdiocese serves about 2.5 million Catholics across roughly 300 churches and more than 150 parochial schools.

The legal reckoning continues elsewhere: attorneys in Chicago filed six lawsuits this month alleging the archdiocese there knew priests were running a sex ring and did not stop it, Baltimore's archdiocese is in mediation with survivors, and Mones says he represents plaintiffs in suits against dioceses including Buffalo, San Diego and San Francisco, showing the crisis remains unresolved nationwide.