Mormon Church Loses Insurance Lawsuit Against its own Insurers

Added: 2026-05-20

[00:00:00]Hi everyone. I want to start by being transparent. I used AI to assist me in making this video. I'm Tim Cosnoff. This case, the West Virginia case, was my case, one my trial team and I fought for five long years on behalf of multiple child sexual abuse survivors against the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Michael Jensen was a teenage church member who sexually abused at least seven victims throughout the 2000s. The church failed to protect these children. We took the case all the way to the brink of a jury verdict when the church finally settled. By that time, tens of millions of dollars in attorneys fees and costs were incurred.

[00:00:43]The church's lawyers churned this tragic case for an obscene amount of attorneys fees, running up nearly as much in legal bills as they ultimately paid my clients. In the end, right before the jury reached its verdict, the church paid $32 million to my clients to settle. But even after that massive payout, the church is still fighting.

[00:01:04]This time against its own insurance companies in federal appeals court.

[00:01:08]Right now, the Mormon church is before the 10th Circuit, arguing that its insurers, National Union Fire and ACE Property and Casualty, should cover the settlement. The church claims all the abuse by the same perpetrator should count as just one single occurrence under the policy. The insurers say these were multiple separate incidents involving different victims at different times and that the church knew but failed to act. A federal district judge sided with the insurers. This week during oral arguments, the three judge panel, especially Judge Nancy Moritz, grilled the insurance lawyers and questioned whether the lower court improperly sided against the church on ambiguous policy language. Here's the bottom line. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints had a sacred duty to protect its children. Instead, it protected the abuser, dragged my clients through five years of hell, and spent millions fighting accountability. Has the church learned its lesson?

[00:02:12]Apparently not, because it continues to cover up child sexual abuse in its ranks to this day. At Cosnoff Law, we've seen this pattern too many times. Powerful institutions that circle the wagons and fight survivors instead of protecting them. If you or a loved one were abused by someone connected to the Mormon church or any institution that failed to protect you, you don't have to fight alone. We hold these organizations accountable. This insurance appeal is still ongoing, but the truth keeps coming out. I'm Tim Cosnoff. Stay informed. Stay strong. Justice is worth fighting for. Text or call me at 425-830-8201 and we'll see if we can