When I think things cannot get worse for my institutional child sexual abuse clients – wham! – another round of trickery is thrust at already vulnerable victims by the highly legalistic and parsimonious hierarchy of the Catholic Church. Whilst feigning compassion, this hierarchy is nervously propelling unknown millions of dollars at lawyers to help them defend the indefensible and to conceal the truth.

The Archdiocese of Melbourne, hiding in the shadows until the federal government led the way with a national redress scheme, announced recently it would offer ex gratia payments to victims, including those who had previously engaged in their internal complaints process, the Melbourne Response. The cap would be doubled to $150,000.

Cardinal George Pell ... retired judge Donnell Ryan has reviewed his Melbourne Response, but that review has not been released. Credit:AP

Friday's announcement, frocked up to lure and exploit the misinformed and vulnerable, actually gazumped the repeatedly-promised and overdue release of a critically important independent review of George Pell's Melbourne Response by retired judge Donnell Ryan.

Although provided to the royal commission, this review will never be publicly viewed, including by those valiant people without whom this review would not exist. Archbishop Hart uses victims, who want this review, as a decoy as he falsely claims that publishing the Ryan Review will only re-traumatise them. The immoral art of ecclesiastical concealment endures.