Overview

• The National Redress Scheme awarded $45,000 and $95,000 to two men for abuse by Cardinal George Pell during the 1970s in Ballarat, Australia.
• One victim described being groped by Pell at a public swimming pool, while the other recounted being raped in a school gymnasium after stealing Pell's cardigan.
• The scheme's findings are based on a lower burden of proof than criminal trials, determining the abuse was 'reasonably likely' to have occurred.
• The Catholic Diocese of Ballarat disputed the victims' accounts but is liable for the compensation payments under the scheme's guidelines.
• The National Redress Scheme was established in 2018 following recommendations from the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse.