George Pell advised to take his time in bid for compo

Supporters of George Pell will encourage him to seek redress for his 405-day jail ordeal and leave open the option to sue for libel.

Cardinal George Pell visits the Goulburn Police station to make a complaint about media following him whilst driving from Melbourne to Sydney. Picture: David Geraghty

Key supporters of George Pell will encourage him to seek financial redress for his 405-day jail ordeal and leave open the option of suing for defamation.

Cardinal Pell is believed to have limited personal money but retains strong support from some wealthy Australians prepared to back him in any future legal fight.

Cardinal Pell, 78, will be advised to respond slowly after his prison ordeal rather than react quickly to seek any retribution or decide whether he is strong enough to return to the courts.

The Weekend Australian understands there have been no binding discussions about recovering any costs or compensation he may be eligible for from the bruising legal campaign that will have cost many millions to fund.

He was defended by two of the nation’s best barristers in the committal, County Court, Victorian Court of Appeal and the High Court.

He retains the support of some of the biggest Catholic and non-Catholic names in Australia, willing to support him financially in any bid for compensation or to recover costs, either through litigation or any ex gratia payment from the Victorian government.

While lawyers have flagged civil legal action against Cardinal Pell and the church after the criminal action ultimately failed, the reality is the Vatican’s former No 3 does not have the personal wealth to make it worthwhile for people seeking restitution to pursue him alone.

In Victoria, the Legal Identity of Defendants Act was framed to nominate the appropriate entity to be sued to avoid the church or other organisations hiding behind legal technicalities to avoid ­payouts.

This means that any successful civil claims will almost certainly be met by the diocese or arch­diocese in question if the goal of the action is to maximise the monetary benefit.

The Weekend Australian understands that some civil claims mooted against Cardinal Pell ­already have fallen over but there are several others that are still alive.

Cardinal Pell was convicted last year of five sex abuse charges against two 13-year-old choirboys, leading to a six-year jail term. The convictions related to his time as archbishop of Melbourne, in 1996 and 1997.

There was a series of other abuse allegations from the Ballarat diocese that did not go to trial.

But in a blow to the Victorian Court of Appeal and the Director of Public Prosecutions, the High Court quashed the convictions, arguing too little attention was given to evidence that suggested the offending was, at the very least, improbable.

The identities of Cardinal Pell’s financial backers in the sex abuse case have not been made known, but it is believed to have been a mix of prominent people and mum-and-dad Catholics. His highest profile supporters include former prime ministers John Howard and Tony Abbott. Mr Howard wrote a reference for Cardinal Pell for the County Court trials.

Wealthy Melbourne silk Allan Myers is also close to Cardinal Pell but his extensive network is seen by some friends as “eclectic’’ and stretching well beyond the Catholic sphere.

It is quite possible Cardinal Pell also would receive support from the Vatican.

Cardinal Pell faces deep animosity from the Victorian government but Victorian Liberal leader Michael O’Brien has declared that the officials involved in Cardinal Pell’s prosecution owe the public an explanation for what happened.

Mr O’Brien said on Thursday that the High Court had effectively stepped in to say that Victoria’s legal system had problems.

Victorian Premier Daniel ­Andrews is seen as antagonistic towards the church and unlikely to be sympathetic to any ex gratia payment to the cardinal.