Andrew Bolt interviews Cardinal George Pell about his convictions for indecent dealing and subsequent acquittals in a unanimous High Court that resoundingly re-affirmed the presumption of innocence and the criminal standard of proof.
They also talk about the Catholic Church’s historical mishandling of allegations of sexual abuse of children.
In December of last year, controversial Catholic Church Cardinal George Pell was convicted of one count of sexual penetration of a child under the age of 16 and four counts of an indecent act with a child under the age of 16 over allegations of abusing choirboys at Melbourne’s St Patrick’s Cathedral in the 1990s. This followed a previous trial that resulted in a hung jury. Continue reading “George Pell’s appeal against convictions dismissed”
“Oh would some power the gift give us, To see ourselves as others see us” – Robert Burns.
In any area of law, a client’s perceptions of matters related to their case are often inaccurate. This is partly because clients don’t have the benefit of the knowledge that comes from experience in such matters. Part of a solicitor’s job is to educate a client about the process, the substantive law and the like. As a result, it is prudent to manage the expectations of clients and after every significant event ask the client whether they understood what has happened, and listen their understanding so that one can ascertain their perceptions.
A client’s perceptions are often further clouded by their emotions, particularly in family law. Many clients’ perceptions of the situation are inaccurate or even twisted, because to put it bluntly their emotions can blind them from actuality. As a result, what a family law client believes to be the case often is not the case at all. And many clients resist being told (and even resent) someone else telling them that their perceptions are inaccurate or untrue.
Continue reading “12 common misperceptions of family law clients”