PA diocese not liable for alleged priest abuse

TRENTON, N.J. — The New Jersey Supreme Court upheld the dismissal of a man’s lawsuit against the Archdiocese of Philadelphia claiming he was sexually assaulted by one of its priests during an overnight trip decades ago. Because the man could not show the priest attended the trip under the archdiocese’s authority, or that the archdiocese knew about the trip at all, it is not liable for the assault. Further, the allegations do not establish that the archdiocese has sufficient contacts with New Jersey to warrant jurisdiction.