Christian Brothers sexual abuse survivors: why you need to act now

It has been almost 10 years since the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse handed down its final report in December 2017.

Since then, survivors of child sexual abuse by members of the Christian Brothers have been able to take legal action without the 3-year limitation period that once restricted their right to sue. The Christian Brothers have reportedly paid close to half a billion dollars to survivors, with most of this compensation paid since the limitation period was removed.

Why the Christian Brothers' asset sale could affect future claims 

But time could well be running out for any survivors of child sex abuse whilst they were under the care of the Christian Brothers, as it has been reported that the Trustees of the Christian Brothers Oceania Province (who control the order in Australia), have announced that they will be selling off their remaining real property assets, valued at about $220 million, to then place the proceeds of this wholesale liquidation of their asset base into an apparent financial scheme to continue to fund the cost of ongoing and any future damages claims to be brought against the order by survivors of child sex abuse. Whilst this scheme has not yet been formally put in place, it is likely to occur in the near future.

What does that mean for those survivors who have not yet been adequately compensated?

The unfortunate short answer to that question is ‘they better act soon before the money runs out’. There is no obligation on the government to step in and cover any shortfalls when it comes to any non-government entity’s liability to pay damages for the impact of child sex abuse. 

What happens if the Christian Brothers can't pay a judgement? 

If any particular non-government entity (legal person) has no ability to fund any order by the court for it (them) to pay a survivor of child sex abuse the damages it might award that person, then it is what lawyers call an ‘empty judgement’ if the Defendant is broke and has no assets etc to draw upon (sell) to pay the court judgement.

What this means is that, we now know there is a finite amount of money left in the Christian Brothers kitty. Once it’s been paid out, then any remaining survivors will simply miss out.

What should survivors of Christian Brothers abuse do now?

Any survivors who have been sitting back contemplating what they might do, should act now to initiate their claims. Given the very large financial impact child abuse has on some individuals, this finite amount of money will soon dissipate in payment of settlements and court awards of damages (some of which are 7 figures).

Contact Cameron Hall Compensation Lawyers for a confidential case review 

Cameron Hall Compensation Lawyers has decades of experience supporting survivors of institutional child abuse through the claims process, with a compassionate and confidential approach. If you were abused by a member of the Christian Brothers, contact our Brisbane, Rockhampton or Darwin office today for a free, no-obligation case review.