"Complicated but Possible" to Amend Legal Standing of Catholic Church

ABC News
November 14, 2013

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-11-14/complicated-but-possible-to-amend-legal-standing/5092072?section=vic

Lawyers are today strongly backing one of the key recommendations of the Victorian parliamentary inquiry into the handling of child abuse cases that laws be changed to allow victims to sue the Catholic Church. The recommendation says religious institutions which receive government funding or tax exemptions must be required to be incorporated. The recommendation is expected to be challenged by the Church.

ELEANOR HALL: Lawyers and survivors of child abuse are today strongly backing one of the key recommendations of the Victorian Report into Child Sexual Abuse, that laws be changed to allow the Catholic Church to be sued.

The recommendation says religious institutions which receive government funding or tax exemptions, should be required to be incorporated.

It's a powerful recommendation and one which many expect the Catholic Church to fight.

In Melbourne, Alison Caldwell reports.

ALISON CALDWELL: In its report to Parliament, the Victorian Committee strongly condemns the legal standing of the Catholic Church, upheld by politicians for decades.

EXCERPT FROM REPORT (voiceover): There is no doubt that the unincorporated structure of the Catholic Church has not only prevented victims of criminal child abuse from bringing legal claims against the Catholic Church as an entity. It has also been exploited by the Catholic Church to avoid financial liability.

ALISON CALDWELL: It's why the Committee has recommended that all religious institutions who receive government funding or tax exemption must now be incorporated, as is the case in the United States.

Author and journalist David Marr.

DAVID MARR: There are several ways you could go about solving this problem. The Committee's way is to leave to one side the very complicated issues of those property trusts. Those property trusts cannot be accessed, essentially cannot be accessed by victims of child abuse.

Now, the Victorian Parliamentarians decided not to deal with the property trusts, but to deal in a different way. The same American understanding. If you want tax concessions, if you want government subsidies, if you want government money, then you have to become a corporate entity.

And in Victoria alone, the Catholic Church gets nearly $100 million a year. So that's the deal. Now, the Church does not want that.

ALISON CALDWELL: Now Cardinal Pell responded late yesterday. What did you read into his response?

DAVID MARR: I thought his response was offensive yesterday. While he and the Archbishop of Melbourne both enthusiastically accepted a number of the recommendations, indeed nearly all of the recommendations, of the Victorian report, and they're far reaching recommendations, they both baulked at the notion of making the Church a corporation.

And Pell said he merely found that interesting reading. Both archbishops have said there's a good deal more talking that needs to be done on this point. And my hunch is, from the history of this, that it's more than talking behind closed doors.

This is going to be, if governments, if the Australian Government, 'cause the Australian Government's going to have to be involved, Canberra's going to have to be involved in this. If they're serious about this, and if they really want to move the Catholic Church to this new legal foundation, they have got the fight of their life on their hands.

ANGELA SDRINIS: Look, it will be complex and it may take time. But I think it's something that can be done.

ALISON CALDWELL: Angela Sdrinis is a lawyer who represents victims of sexual assault.

ANGELA SDRINIS: We already have examples in Victorian legislation of churches who are incorporated for all purposes. Examples in Victoria include the Brotherhood of St Laurence Incorporation Act, the Baptist Union Incorporation Act, the Lutheran Church of Australia Incorporation Act and so on and so forth.

The Committee refer to those acts and they could be a model for changes in relation to the way in which the Catholic Church and other religious institutions are currently incorporated.

ALISON CALDWELL: There's never been one successful case against a religious institution for child sex abuse in Victoria.

That's partly to do with the statute of limitations which also covers criminal child abuse. The Committee wants criminal child abuse removed from the statute.

Angela Sdrinis says if that happens, it will make a difference.

ANGELA SDRINIS: These changes will mean that in some of those historical cases, claimants have the prospect of success. Now that doesn't mean it will solve the problem for all victims of historical abuse. One of the other problems faced by victims of historical abuse is proving their allegations. Obviously as time goes on, that becomes a lot harder to do.

You're relying upon the recollections of damaged children. It will still be hard to successfully sue in these cases. But at least where you find the case where you think you've got sufficient evidence, you won't have these technical defences barring your way.

ELEANOR HALL: That's senior partner at Ryan Carlisle and Thomas, Angela Sdrinis, ending Alison Caldwell's report.