[BenKenobi]

Flip it around. They can only be held responsible, if and only if they are chopped up this way.

If they are subsidiaries of the Catholic church, and headquartered in the Vatican, then they all have sovereign immunity. :)

So, take your pick.

[redgolum]

Which is true to a point. And it is part of the reason the dioceses and parishes were set up the way they were. Similar thing in other churches.

The problems that arise is what is the true reporting authority? In the typical Catholic ecclessial system, the Pope is the head of the “corporation” for lack of a better term. If in the legal sense he is not, but he exercises authority like he is, someone will challenge that.

This is a legal mine field, and will (not may) result in a serious change in who heads up the corporations we call “churches” on paper, and how they are set up.