Statutory church property trustees created under the Roman Catholic Church Trust Property Act 1936 (NSW) cannot be sued for torts arising from the appointment and supervision of clergy, as their statutory role is confined to property matters. The Roman Catholic Archbishop of Sydney is not a corporation sole at common law and the current Archbishop cannot be made liable for the alleged torts of a predecessor in office. Representative proceedings under UCPR r 7.4 cannot be used to make all members of an unincorporated religious association liable for the torts of an individual office holder where the relationship between the tortfeasor and the members is too slender and diffuse to establish vicarious liability. The question of whether clergy can be in employment-like relationships for vicarious liability purposes was left open.
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