AUSTRALIA
Illawarra Mercury
By EMMA SPILLETT June 25, 2014
Wollongong lawyer Mark Johnston still remembers the day Frank* wandered into his office, seeking advice about his dealings with the Catholic Church.
The initial meeting triggered a chain of events, which culminated in a year-long legal battle that allegedly exposed the failings of the Church’s ‘‘Towards Healing’’ program.
Fast forward nearly a decade and the Church’s internal settlement regime is now under intense scrutiny by the Royal Commission into the Institutional Response to Child Sexual Abuse.
Some abuse victims have come forward to blast the Church’s ‘‘healing process’’ and its alleged attempt to steer people away from legal action, in exchange for a financial settlement.
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