IRELAND
Irish Times
A brother and sister suing Cardinal Sean Brady and another bishop arising from abuse suffered at the hands of clerical child abuser Brendan Smyth will have to prove that a settlement of a previous case does not prevent them from bringing their legal action.
The president of the High Court, Mr Justice Nicholas Kearns, has directed a trial on November 28th of a preliminary issue as to whether the previous settlement of proceedings brought by the siblings from Belfast was “the subject of a prior accord and satisfaction”.
The pair are suing Cardinal Brady and the Bishop of Kilmore, Leo O’Reilly – as successor to the previous bishop of Kilmore, Francis McKiernan – alleging negligence over allegedly failing to take any or any adequate steps to ensure Smyth did not continue to perpetrate sexual assaults on them in the 1970s and 1980s.
Cardinal Brady is being sued in his personal capacity over his role as part-time secretary to Bishop McKiernan in 1975 during the investigation of complaints about Smyth, since deceased.
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