A state Supreme Court judge has temporarily halted payments from the region’s Catholic churches to the Buffalo diocese to help pay for child sex abuse lawsuits.

State Supreme Court Justice John DelMonte issued his order last week in a lawsuit brought by several Buffalo-area Catholic Church officials. An Aug. 6 deadline has been set by DelMonte while the Buffalo Diocese formulates a response to the decision. The decision only affects the churches in the lawsuit, according to a recent story by the Catholic News Agency, with Holy Apostles Parish joining the suit last week.

“It appearing that a cause of action for a preliminary injunction exists and that the collection of receipt of 80% of the parish funds by the defendants on July 15, 2025, until such time as the court can hear the matter will cause immediate and irreparable injury, loss and damage to the plaintiffs, and it is ordered that, pending such a hearing on the motion for a preliminary injunction brought by way of this order to show cause that defendants show cause before this court on July 11, 2025, why a temporary restraining order should not be entered against the defendants restraining from paying or receiving 80% of parish funds to the Diocese of Buffalo,” DelMonte’s order states.

The churches argue that the April 2025 settlement of $150 million between the Buffalo Diocese and child sex abuse victims violates state bankruptcy court law because the court has not been submitted to the Bankruptcy Court judge for approval. The payments from area churches are to pay for that settlement. The lawsuit states plaintiffs had not been provided with actual settlement in principle documents and were unaware of the settlement’s principle terms and conditions.

“The diocese has informed plaintiffs parishes that the settlement in principle agreement provides for the diocese to pay $150,000,000 and that the diocese has instructed the parishes to contribute towards the diocese payment,” the lawsuit states. “That the diocese requested contribution by plaintiff’s parishes is for uses inconsistent with and contrary to the purposes for which the parishes were created, and the contributions would be inconsistent with plaintiffs parishes’ religious, charitable, benevolent and educational purposes.”

In June, Judge Carl Bucki, Western District of New York Bankruptcy Court judge, ruled the diocese is subject to the not-for-profit section of bankruptcy law saying that a charitable corporation must honor a donor’s direction and intention, and that the diocese’s motion seeks to use the sale proceeds for inconsistent purposes like funding a settlement of abuse claims.

The churches also argue that parishes that are contesting mergers and closures should not have to pay toward the settlement until the Vatican makes a decision on their appeals. The Buffalo Diocese has said parishes appealing their closure will be assessed at 80% of their unrestricted cash, due on July 15. The diocese would refund part of the money if the parishes’ appeals are upheld by the Vatican.

“Rather than comply with the Vatican order granting the requests of the Bishop’s Degrees of Extinctive Mergers, the Diocese and the Bishop is requiring the payments by July 15, 2025, which if made would be catastrophic and likely would severely, if not fatally destroy the parishes,” the lawsuit states. “The Diocese and the Bishop ignores the irreparable harm the parishes would suffer by turning over the 80%, since the parishes would be unable to adequately function and serve its community. Severe and irreparable harm would be inflicted upon plaintiffs’ parishes if 80% of the unrestricted cash and investments are paid to the Diocese by July 15, 2025. The vast majority of the cash and investments, if not all in the parishes were made to the parishes for the sole purpose and use of and in the existing parishes. None of the monies contributed to the Parishes were for the payment of the Diocese’s victims of abuse.”