The current practices and procedures of the Catholic Church have been
under intense scrutiny over the past two weeks of the Royal
Commission’s Case Study 50. One of the interesting issues raised during
evidence heard by the Commission has been the extent to which the
Church’s own internal legal system, called canon law, impedes the proper
reporting of child abuse. And in some instances actually leads to cover
ups.
Does canon law conflict with state law? Canon law is the body of laws that has been established over time to govern the church and its members.