Lawyer Tim Coyne says they never told him they had shredded a 1994 list of 35 accused priests still on duty.
Prosecutors wanted the list in 2004 for a grand jury investigation.
Coyne says he doesn't remember getting any response from the late Cardinal Anthony Bevilacqua. And he says the aides denied knowing where it was.
A copy was found early this year - days after Bevilacqua died. Another memo states Bevilacqua ordered his aides to shred the list in 1994, after Monsignor William Lynn prepared it.
Lynn, the former secretary for clergy, is charged with child endangerment for allegedly keeping predators in ministry.
