AUSTRALIA
The Age
David Ellery
Reporter for The Canberra Times.
The prosecution of Canberra Marist Brother John William Chute (aka Brother Kostka) in 2008 and subsequent six-figure civil compensation payouts were crucial in exposing the Catholic Church’s sex abuse scandal nationwide, ACT lawyer Jason Parkinson says.
“The Marist Brothers cases [in the ACT] were pivotal in Australian history [in relation to abuse within the Catholic system],” he said.
“Because they were dealt with in open court, it exposed how the Catholic Church acted in private and people did not like what they saw. This led to the groundswell of disgust that contributed to the decision to establish the royal commission.”
Mr Parkinson, of Porters Lawyers, represented more than 20 alleged victims whose claims were settled between 2008 and December 2009.
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