‘Our voices will be heard’: survivors herald court ruling against tactics used by Australian churches to avoid abuse claims

Matt Barker, an abuse survivor, says the high court’s decision sent 'a ‘very strong message’ that instutions should not be using permanent stays to avoid court. Photograph: Mike Bowers/The Guardian

Abuse survivors and lawyers have called on the Catholic church and other institutions to cease using permanent stays to shield themselves from abuse claims and for legislative reform to reopen past cases where the tactic has been used.

A Guardian investigation earlier this year revealed how the Catholic church was routinely telling Australian courts that delay, the death of paedophile clergy and the absence of documentary evidence left it unable to receive a fair trial in abuse cases.