Article: Fourth Department says priest could owe fiduciary duty; diocese might be liable too

In a precedent-setting case, the Appellate Division of the Fourth Judicial Department has found that a priest may owe a fiduciary duty of care to an adult woman parishioner with whom he had an adulterous affair while providing marriage counseling.

The woman and her husband, identified only as Jane and John Doe, are seeking damages as a result of the woman's affair with the priest, Peter M. Debellis.

The suit also charges Bishop Matthew Clark and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Rochester with negligent retention and supervision.

In a split 3-2 decision, the Appellate Division found that Monroe County Supreme Court Justice Stephen K. Lindley erred in dismissing the wife's complaint in Jane Doe ...

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