The Christian Brothers, a Catholic organization, own property that has housed at least two convicted child sex offenders. Yet in court, the order says it cannot afford to pay money to people it harmed. Records from Guardian Australia show this The Guardian.

The order kept nine convicted abusers on staff, according to a July 3 Guardian report. Court documents say the order felt obligated to do this based on a "Gospel imperative" to "care for all Brothers" and "the needy" The Guardian.

The order's own rules require it to pay for all members' living expenses, no matter their criminal history. This includes housing, utilities, health insurance, a monthly allowance of $1,200, vehicles, and spiritual retreats The Guardian. But in June 2026, the order told the court these same spending obligations mean it has no money left to pay survivors.

One Brother's Three Decades of Moves

Peter Toomey's story shows how the system worked. In 2005, he was convicted of assaulting school students in the 1970s. He went to jail again in 2019 for assaulting two teenage boys. But the order knew about problems with Toomey since 1973. Officials were warned he had an "indiscretion" with a boy. Two years later, they heard he was "too familiar" in how he touched students. Instead of removing him, the order moved him to different schools—Forest Hill, Parkville, Cathedral College. At one school, he was put in charge of the choir and altar boys. In 1990 he moved to a school in Western Australia. Another complaint came in 1994, and he admitted to it. A third complaint arrived in 2000. Yet he stayed in teaching jobs at three schools for the rest of that year. Nearly thirty years passed from the first warning to the first conviction.

Rex Elmer followed a similar path. He was convicted of abusing children at a Christian Brothers home for orphans in the 1970s. He has been jailed three separate times, most recently in 2021.

A Sudden Financial Crisis and Asset Deals

How the money moves matter. In late June, the Christian Brothers said they might sell their property to pay compensation ABC News. The Australian government warned the court this would be "obviously disturbing" if it meant selling property for $1 and using that to claim poverty while survivors got nothing The Guardian. Then in early July, the court froze all lawsuits against the order, apparently because it said it had no money BBC. Survivors responded by asking the court to go after a related organization, Edmund Rice Education Australia, which has received money from the Christian Brothers The Guardian.

This sequence is becoming familiar in abuse cases: an organization declares itself broke, then quickly moves assets around, and survivors find themselves unable to recover anything. The real question now is whether the Christian Brothers truly lacks money or whether it has deliberately hidden its assets.

The history here is long. Reports of abuse at Christian Brothers facilities stretch back to 1919 ABC News. Between 1947 and 1968, evidence showed that Christian Brothers running children's homes did not report abuse to police ABC News. A major government investigation called the Royal Commission heard from 1,200 witnesses and found that 281 Christian Brothers had faced claims of abuse The Guardian. Across all Catholic organizations studied, the Christian Brothers accounted for 22 percent of all abuse claims—the highest of any group ABC News. As recently as 2022, a former school principal named Stephen McLaughlin was convicted of abuse he committed as a Christian Brother ABC News.

Everyone agrees the Christian Brothers harmed children. The question now is whether they will actually pay for it.