What Happened With UKnight’s 2018-2019 Lawsuit Against the Knights of Columbus?
In 2018, the Colorado-based tech company UKnight Interactive filed a lawsuit against the Knights of Columbus (KofC). The KofC is the biggest Catholic fraternal organization, and one of the largest fraternal-benefit societies of any kind, in the world.
UKnight made a number of sweeping allegations against the KofC, including fraud. UKnight sought damages in an amount totaling over $100 million.
Some news outlets, including BuzzFeed,[1] wrote about the assertions in tones that suggested a grand conspiracy – both against its own membership, and against the various organizations that rate insurers according to financial strength.[2] (These include AM Best and Standard & Poor’s.)
Knights of Columbus Largely Cleared
In September of 2019, the KofC appears to have been more or less entirely vindicated.[3]
A judge ordered the KofC to pay $500,000 for breach of contract.[4]
To put the ruling in perspective, consider that this amount constitutes less than half of one percent of what the plaintiffs were seeking.
This seems to suggest that most of what UKnight claimed was demonstrated to have been false.[5]
As one spokesperson for the KofC stated, the judgment is what one would expect in a “garden-variety contract case.”
Apparently, the KofC pulled the plug on its dealings with Colorado company when an emissary from the Order conducted an on-site inspection and found the UKnight facility to have been substandard.
Anecdotal reports suggest that, essentially, UKnight may have been operating servers in the basement of a private residence.
The KofC inspector reported his finding to the vice presidents at the “Supreme” Home Office, at which point the KofC made the decision to sever ties with UKnight. Unfortunately for the KofC, the court ruled that this course of action violated the contract into which the Order had entered.
The Moral of the Story
Therefore, in retrospect, and in light of the judicial ruling, UKnight’s various, sensational allegations appear to have groundless.
But, arguably, the KofC upper echelon should have used
better judgment to begin with, in selecting an internet-technology company.
[1] Ema O’Connor, “Phantom Knights,” BuzzFeed, August 26, 2019, <https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/emaoconnor/knights-of-columbus-insurance-lawsuit>.
[2] See, also: Jibran Ali Mirza, “Knights of Columbus Facing Lawsuit Over Alleged Business Misconduct,” Market Watch, S&P Global, May 10, 2018, <https://www.spglobal.com/marketintelligence/en/news-insights/trending/d63p1_ofjhj8grhfqlyu0a2>.
[3] See J.D. Flynn, “Judgment Reached in Knights of Columbus Contract Lawsuit,” Catholic News Agency,” September 13, 2019, <https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/judgment-reached-in-knights-of-columbus-contract-lawsuit-59714>.
[4] Christopher Hoffman, “Knights of Columbus Must Pay $500,000 in Contract Dispute,” CT Post, September 13, 2019, <https://www.ctpost.com/local/article/Knights-of-Columbus-must-pay-500-000-in-contract-14438512.php>.
[5] Or, more carefully, it suggests that most of what UKnight asserted could not be demonstrated to be true.