St. Thomas President Julie Sullivan announced Tuesday that an investigation has concluded that no university employees in a position of authority over the Rev. Michael Keating had prior knowledge of sexual abuse allegations against him.

The statement, which was emailed to the St. Thomas community, said the university brought in an outside law firm to conduct an independent investigation into “clergy sexual abuse allegations that may impact the university.”

Sullivan said the results of the investigation are confidential.

In the statement, Sullivan did note that neither she nor the Rev. Dennis Dease, president emeritus, was aware of allegations of sexual misconduct against Keating prior to October 2013, when a lawsuit was filed against him. Sullivan added university officials were not aware of any restrictions or recommendations regarding Keating from the Clergy Review Board.

Keating, who formally resigned last month, took a voluntary leave from his St. Thomas position on Oct. 13, 2013, one day before the Jane Doe 20 lawsuit was filed against him in Ramsey County. The university announced its hiring of an outside law firm to investigate the matter on Oct. 19, 2013.

The lawsuit alleges Keating sexually abused a woman over a two-year span beginning in 1997 when she was 13 years old. Keating was a seminary student at that time. He joined the university in 2006.

Tuesday’s statement also said the St. Thomas administration “has not received any complaints of, and is not aware of any unreported allegations of, sexual misconduct against Father Keating during his time at the university.” Sullivan wrote that the university has not received any allegations of sexual misconduct against past or present clergy members that were not reviewed and addressed.

Sullivan noted in her statement that Keating continues to deny the allegations of the lawsuit.

Baihly Warfield and Jacob Sevening contributed to this report.