Notes and definitions

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Notes

1. This section of the document deals with the procedures to be applied where victims (or other complainants on their behalf) seek a response from the Church as a result of abuse. It is to be implemented in the context of the previous sections on principles.
2. These procedures are a revised version of the document published by the Australian Catholic Bishops' Conference and the Australian Conference of Leaders of Religious Institutes in 1996.
3. These procedures are intended to apply to all complaints of abuse by Church personnel, whether they be clerics, religious personnel, lay employees or volunteers. In the case of current lay employees, the response of the Church authority will be made in conjunction with the relevant body for employment relations in each state or territory.
4. A complaint of abuse may raise medical, psychological, spiritual, legal and practical questions. An appropriate response may, therefore, need to be based on a team approach.

Definitions

'Abuse' means:

• Sexual assault, sexual harassment or any other conduct of a sexual nature that is inconsistent with the integrity of the relationship between Church personnel and those who are in their pastoral care.
• Behaviour by a person with responsibility for a child or young person which causes serious physical pain or mental anguish without any legitimate disciplinary purpose as judged by the standards of the time when the behaviour occurred.

'Accused' means the person against whom a complaint of abuse is made.

'Children and young people' refers to those persons under the age of 18.

'Church authority' includes a bishop, a leader of a religious institute and the senior administrative authority of an autonomous lay organisation, and their authorised representatives, responsible for the Church body to which the accused person is or was connected.

'Church body' includes a diocese, religious institute and any other juridical person, body corporate, organisation or association, including autonomous lay organisations, that exercise pastoral ministry within, or on behalf of, the Catholic Church.

'Church personnel' includes any cleric, member of a religious institute or other persons who are employed by a Church body, or appointed by a Church body to voluntary positions in which they work with children or young people, or engage in other forms of pastoral care.

'Church procedure' means a penal process under canon law, or a disciplinary process in relation to a person who is employed by a Church body, or an assessment process under Clause 40 of these procedures.

'Civil authorities' include members of the police service as well as officials of the government departments responsible for child protection, for the administration of laws relating to complaints of sexual harassment, for the discipline of professions and for industrial relations.

'Complainant' means the person who has alleged abuse against Church personnel. In most but not all cases the complainant will also be the person against whom it is alleged that the abuse was directed, and this is to be understood in this document unless the context suggests otherwise.

'Offender' means a person who has admitted abuse or whose responsibility for abuse has been determined by a court of law or by due process in accordance with canon law, or a disciplinary process in relation to a person who is employed by a Church body, or an assessment process under Clause 40 of these procedures.

'Pastoral care' means the work involved or the situation which exists when one person has responsibility for the wellbeing of another. This includes the provision of spiritual advice and support, education, counselling, medical care, and assistance in times of need. All work involving the supervision or education of children and young people is a work of pastoral care.

'Victim' means the person against whom the abuse was directed.

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Disclaimer Copyright Updated: 22 Sep 2009