Deadline Looms To File Report With Brooklyn Diocese Sex Abuse Compensation Program

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Time is running out for victims of past sexual abuse by priests in Queens or Brooklyn to report their cases.

The deadline to file a claim with the Brooklyn Diocese Compensation Program is Feb. 28 but an administrator said the claim won't be considered unless the abuse is reported by Thursday.

"They need to be aware of that, and they need to come forward and they need to come forward now or they are missing this opportunity and at least it's an option," said Jerry Kristal, an attorney with the group Lawyers Helping Survivors of Child Sex Abuse.

A diocese spokesperson emphasized that the claims process does not require a lawyer, adding that many attorneys have profited from soliciting survivors.

"Corporations such as the Brooklyn Diocese are very afraid of getting lawyers involved in any process that involves them and bad conduct and compensation," Kristal said. "I totally understand the attack on the lawyers, they ought to look inward and they ought to look at why this process is even happening."

The diocese hotline to file a report is 1-888-634-4499.