Two weeks ago, former governor-general Peter Hollingworth walked into the hearing that will decide if he should be stripped of holy orders over his handling of child sex abuse cases as Anglican archbishop of Brisbane in the 1990s.
But only one of his accusers, Beth Heinrich, was there — and says she was told she would only have the opportunity to read a victim impact statement.
"I remember a lawyer from Kooyoora trying to dissuade me from attending as it was too traumatic," she said.
"But I said, 'I do need to be there.'"
Most of those who brought complaints against Dr Hollingworth, who remains a bishop in the church, say they were not invited to take part at all.
Concerns about the process have been shared by the State's Children's Commissioner who said the five-year process had "not met reasonable community expectations".
The hearing, which began on February 6 and ran for four days, was closed to public and the media.
Advocates for survivors of church abuse have said there is already enough evidence on the public record to defrock Dr Hollingworth — including a finding by the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse that Dr Hollingworth made a serious error of judgement by allowing confessed paedophile John Eliot to remain in the church.
One said he was not even told the hearing was on until he received what he described as an apologetic call the day after it ended, from Fiona Boyle, the CEO of Kooyoora — the agency charged with handling and investigating complaints.
"She told me there had been some confusion about which member of the Kooyoora team was supposed to get in contact with him," said Brian*, who was abused from the age of nine in Brisbane by John Elliot at the Church of England Boys' Society.
"I told her she should be ashamed," he said. "She said, 'I am,' — and offered me a contact for trauma counselling."
Brian — and numerous others who have been waiting decades for this case to be heard — say they have been shut out and ignored.
Until that phone call, Brian said he had not heard from Kooyoora since 2021.
"I was told about the original hearing date in 2021, but I was never even informed that it was postponed," he said.
"I was promised constant updates, but they never happened.
"It's evident to me that if you're not contacting them, you're not going to get anything back."
"It's like the royal commission never happened," said Pamela*, whose child was a victim of alleged abuse at a Queensland Anglican college in the 1990s.
She wrote to Kooyoora's director of professional standards in 2022, asking when the hearing would be held, and if complainants would be brought to Melbourne to attend. She says she never received a response.
"The church said they would be model litigants,'' she said.
"Instead, the Kooyoora experience has been uninviting and non-transparent. It was far too secretive."
Pamela and Brian are among numerous complainants spoken to by the ABC who say they are angry they did not get the chance to see their case presented — and have no idea what went on inside the hearing room.
"I have never spoken with Kooyoora's current barrister," Brian said.
"It seems impossible she could be across it all."
Even more frustrating for complainants is that five years ago, a previous Kooyoora investigator said there was more than enough evidence on the public record for the Archbishop of Melbourne, Philip Freier, to defrock Dr Hollingworth without the need for a hearing.
That investigator's employment with Kooyoora ended shortly afterward, and his recommendation was never acted on.
Church has broken promises to survivors, advocate says
Kooyoora was established in 2017 by the Anglican dioceses of Melbourne and Bendigo, which remain the sole members of the company.
Its CEO Fiona Boyle did not comment on why complainants were not contacted, or on Brian's allegation that she conceded being "ashamed" about the process.
Ms Boyle has said Kooyoora usually resolves complaints against Anglican clergy and staff between six weeks and 12 months after receiving them — and would not comment on why this case has taken five years to reach a hearing, other than to say that it was "terrible" if any matter took that long.
Survivors have had enough.
"The church should be hanging their heads in shame over this one," said Steve Fisher, who heads the advocacy group Beyond Abuse.
Days after the Hollingworth hearing ended, he wrote to Premier Daniel Andrews, Kooyoora and Victoria's Commissioner for Children and Young people Liana Buchanan, requesting an urgent intervention in the process.
"We have been talking to the churches about this for 20 years," Mr Fisher said.
"They have assured us time after time that they've changed their process, and the deeds of the past will never happen again.
"They have broken every promise they have made with regards to their understanding of what this will do to survivors by not including them in the processes."
Ms Buchanan said she was "deeply troubled" by the concerns victim-survivors and advocates had about the Church's protracted process.
"Based on what has been described publicly, the professional standards process in response to allegations against Dr Peter Hollingworth has not met reasonable community expectations," she said.
The commission does not have any authority over the removal of holy orders, but it does oversee compliance by religious organisations with the Child Safe Standards and Reportable Conduct Scheme.
"The Commission takes the concerns raised seriously, and within the role set out for the Commission in legislation we look to hold religious organisations to account for making improvements,'' Ms Buchanan said.
Mr Andrews urged the church to re-examine its procedures.
"There is certainly some concerns that have been raised and we should take those seriously," he said.
"It would be my hope that that church and all agencies and bodies who are involved in these processes listen to the people that they are supposed to be supporting and that is the victim survivors and those who advocate for them."
The ABC approached lawyers for Dr Hollingworth, but was told they were unable to comment.
Survivors and their families hold out little hope that anything will change.
"I have been trying to get justice for decades," Pamela said.
"This is not a transparent inquiry."
*Names have been changed to protect identity.
