AUSTRALIA
Illawarra Mercury
By RICHARD ACKLAND March 28, 2014
COMMENT
The joy of commissions, royal or otherwise. In a place where the rules of evidence don’t get in the way of finding the truth, a good commissioner or counsel assisting can really fire up the proceedings.
And commissioner Peter McClellan with counsel assisting Gail Furness, at the royal commission into child sex abuse, are on fire.
Over this week there has been a spellbinding display of the moral vacuum at the heart of two mighty institutions – the Catholic Church and the law.
Cardinal George Pell slithered all over the place as he was questioned about the church’s conduct in the infamous Ellis case. Everyone else was to blame, his lawyers, his private secretary, the unreasonableness of his litigation opponents.
Because the damage done to victims of child sexual abuse is not necessarily manifest immediately, John Ellis had to apply for an extension to the limitation period so as to bring his civil claim against the church.
Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.