A man walks by the offices of the Diocese of Rockville Centre, Thursday, Oct. 1, 2020, in Rockville Centre, N.Y.
The diocese filed for bankruptcy on Thursday because of financial pressure from lawsuits over past sexual abuse by clergy members.
The Diocese of Rockville Centre fought the law in court, arguing it was unconstitutional.
Jeff Anderson, a lawyer for 73 people suing the Rockville Centre Diocese over alleged abuse, slammed the bankruptcy filing as “strategic, cowardly and wholly self-serving."
He said that employees and vendors will be paid and that parishes and schools are separate legal entities not covered in the bankruptcy filing.