Rightside Legal has successfully represented clients who were abused as children by Christian Brother Edward Vernon Dowlan (also known as Ted Bales).
Rightside has won more than $10 million in compensation from the Christian Brothers for these men.
Dowlan (Bales) entered the Christian Brothers novitiate in 1968 and made his perpetual vows in 1975.
He taught at and abused numerous boys at various Christian Brothers schools including:
- St Alipius Catholic Primary School in the Ballarat Diocese in 1971
- St Patrick’s College in 1973 to 1975 (also in Ballarat)
- St Augustine’s boys orphanage in Geelong
- Cathedral College in Melbourne in the 1980s, where he was also appointed as sub-superior/headmaster.
He was moved from Cathedral College in 1985 to St Joseph’s in Box Hill (not a teaching position) then back to teaching in Geelong at St Mary’s Technical School, then principal at St Vincent’s in South Melbourne, and then Catholic Regional College in Geelong from 1991 to 1993
He was investigated in 1995 and in 1996 he pled guilty sexually offending against 11 former students, including from St Alipius and St Patrick’s.
He pled guilty to further offences in 2014 and 2022 (more than 50 offences combined)
The first complaint about Dowlan (Bales) was in 1971 in Ballarat, there are documents publicly available from the Royal Commission about his behaviour in the 1970s.
The Christian Brothers Provincial met the costs of his 1995 criminal proceedings and the Brothers continued to support him, including as late as 2008.
If you have any further information or you want legal advice in relation to Brother Edward Dowlan, please call 1300765702 or complete the confidential enquiry form below.
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