The High Court reached the correct decision in acquitting Pell

Those with ongoing doubts about the merits of the acquittal should actually read the High Court decision and the judgment of Justice Weinberg in the Court of Appeal, Australia's most experienced criminal appeal court judge.

Many of those in the community who are angered about the acquittal would likely change their view after reading these judgments from some of the best legal minds in Australia explaining why the conviction had to be overturned.

What now?

Australians should be grateful that the High Court's unanimous decision to acquit Cardinal Pell will go some way to remedying the harm his unjust conviction has caused to the national and international reputation of Australia's justice system.

The case also highlights the need for changes to the Victorian legal system. In particular, the widespread hostility directed to Pell by the media and other sections of the community raised serious doubts about whether it was possible to empanel a jury that could fairly assess the evidence against him.

In New South Wales, South Australia, Western Australia, Queensland and the Australian Capital Territory it is possible to have a judge alone trial that can assist in providing a fair trial of an unpopular defendant.

The Victorian government should give careful consideration to amending the law to provide judges with the discretion of allowing judge alone trials when it is in the interests of justice.

Consideration should also be given to establishing an inquiry into the conduct of the Victorian police to determine whether they adhered to appropriate professional standards in fulfilling their duties to the community.

An unfortunate outcome of the acquittal of Cardinal Pell may be to discourage individuals from reporting sexual assaults and other crimes to the police especially against a high profile individual.

There must also now be grave concerns that there may be other individuals in Victorian prisons who have similarly been unjustly convicted but lack the resources necessary to appeal a conviction to the High Court.

One of the many benefits of a public inquiry could be to rebuild community confidence that Victoria Police has the capacity to respect the rights of both the accused and complainants and to competently investigate a complaint to determine whether there should be a prosecution.

The case also raises many questions about the professionalism of the media especially the ABC considering its legal obligations under its founding Act to be accurate, impartial and objective.