The High Court of Australia has upheld a landmark ruling that the Catholic Church is liable for the sexual abuse of a 13-year-old boy by a priest in the late 1960s. The man alleged Father Ronald Pickin abused him in the presbytery of St Patrick's Catholic Church at Wallsend, in the diocese of Maitland-Newcastle.
The court found the church had a non-delegable duty to ensure the child's safety while under the care of a priest. This duty extended to preventing reasonably foreseeable harm, including intentional criminal acts like sexual abuse. The ruling broke new ground by imposing liability even though the church was unaware of the danger.
The man initially won his case on vicarious liability, but that was overturned after a previous High Court ruling that priests were not employees. His lawyers then argued the church had a non-delegable duty, which the High Court accepted. The court halved the man's payout to $335,920 and awarded costs against the church.
The case comes as states and territories consider laws to impose vicarious liability on organizations like churches and Scouts for the actions of paedophiles. The ACT has already introduced such legislation, prompted by earlier High Court decisions that limited liability to formal employees.
