Australian Taxpayers May Cover Millions in Payouts as Catholic Order Goes Broke

Christian Brothers, with long record of child abuse, tells court it cannot afford to compensate survivors

Australian taxpayers could be forced to cover as much as $65 million in redress payments to abuse survivors after a Catholic order with a long record of child abuse said it can no longer afford to pay them, according to court documents obtained by the Guardian.

The Christian Brothers informed a court last month that the organization was going broke and would not be able to fund payouts to survivors, the Guardian reported. Newly revealed filings show the order could face hundreds of redress claims, potentially leaving the government to absorb the cost if the order collapses.

The prospect has alarmed advocates who have spent years pushing for accountability from Catholic institutions implicated in historic child abuse. The Christian Brothers has been named repeatedly in abuse inquiries across Australia, and the order's potential insolvency raises fresh questions about how survivors will be compensated if the institution responsible for the harm no longer exists.

The case is likely to intensify scrutiny of how redress schemes handle claims against organizations that plead financial hardship, and whether taxpayers should ultimately bear costs stemming from abuse carried out by private religious institutions.

— Compiled from reporting by the Guardian.