The Catholic Church could face compensation claims of more than £1.5 million from the 20 victims of Brendan Smyth, who was jailed yesterday for sexual abuse of children as young as six.
The 70-year-old paedophile priest was sentenced by Dublin Circuit Criminal Court after pleading guilty to 74 charges of indecent and sexual assault committed over a 35-year period.
Leave to appeal was refused. After sentence was passed, a male victim shouted at him: "Rot in Hell, Smyth."
Smyth will serve nine years once statutory remission of one quarter of the sentence length is deducted. He has been sent to the recently-refurbished Curragh Prison in Co Kildare, which holds 80 inmates.
Smyth has already served two terms totalling just under three years for 43 child abuse offences in the North.
Legal sources estimated last night that the "going rate" for compensation claims by victims of clerical child sex abuse would be between £50,000 and £100,000. The sum would vary with the circumstances. If the 20 victims involved in yesterday's trial received an average payment of £75,000 each, the total bill with costs would be more than £1.5 million.
While there has not yet been a case of a court in this State ordering the Catholic Church to pay damages to victims of clerical sex abuse, several out-of-court settlements have been made.
These include £27,000 paid in 1993 by the Dublin priest, Father Ivan Payne, to a Cabra man who claimed to have been sexually assaulted by him when he was an altar boy. In the same year, Mr Alan O'Sullivan received £56,000 from a Dublin priest who had violently abused him when he was an altar boy.
Mr O'Sullivan's solicitor, Mr Julian Deale, said he estimated that "at today's values, a minimum rule of thumb in such cases would be something in the range of £50,000 to £75,000. This would in some way attempt to rehabilitate the person so that he or she would make a fresh start in life."
Six of Father Smyth's victims in the North have already initiated proceedings for compensation against the Catholic Primate, Dr Sean Brady, according to their solicitor, Mr Ted Lavery. Solicitors for the Primate are denying liability.
One of Mr Lavery's clients was also involved in this week's case, as she had been abused by Fr Smyth in the Republic.
Smyth's Norbertine Order has expressed "deep sorrow" to Smyth's victims and said it was "painfully aware" of the inadequacy of its response. It has begun an ecclesiastical disciplinary process against Smyth which could lead to him being laicised.
Yesterday's sentence was welcomed by social workers and childcare agencies, including Barnardos.