A Roman Catholic diocese faces paying £8m in compensation after
three high court judges ruled today it owned and ran an institution
where 142 former pupils are suing for abuse.
Last July, the diocese of Middlesbrough went to the court of appeal seeking to overturn a judge's ruling that it was responsible for St William's Community Home, Market Weighton, Yorkshire, rather than the De La Salle Brothers, a Catholic order who taught and worked there.
It is the biggest historical abuse claim against the Roman Catholic church of England and Wales, centring around the alleged abuse of boys, aged between 10 and 16, from 1960 to 1992.
St William's provided residential care and education for boys with emotional and behavioural problems aged from 11 to 18, mainly from Yorkshire and north-east England.
Humberside police began an investigation in 2001, which focused on child abuse at the home between 1965 and 1992.
The former principal, Father James Carragher, was jailed for 14 years in 2004 after admitting to abusing boys in his care.
In 2006, a group of former pupils launched a compensation claim. No hearing has yet taken place.
Last July, the diocese of Middlesbrough went to the court of appeal seeking to overturn a judge's ruling that it was responsible for St William's Community Home, Market Weighton, Yorkshire, rather than the De La Salle Brothers, a Catholic order who taught and worked there.
It is the biggest historical abuse claim against the Roman Catholic church of England and Wales, centring around the alleged abuse of boys, aged between 10 and 16, from 1960 to 1992.
St William's provided residential care and education for boys with emotional and behavioural problems aged from 11 to 18, mainly from Yorkshire and north-east England.
Humberside police began an investigation in 2001, which focused on child abuse at the home between 1965 and 1992.
The former principal, Father James Carragher, was jailed for 14 years in 2004 after admitting to abusing boys in his care.
In 2006, a group of former pupils launched a compensation claim. No hearing has yet taken place.
SIC: TG/UK