Cardinal George Pell and football

On 7 April 2020 the High Court of Australia unanimously allowed Cardinal George Pell's appeal against his convictions for 5 charges of sexual assault after two trials and an unsuccessful appeal to the Full Court of the Victorian Court of Appeal.

It is useful to consider the process against the background of football. As an example, to put this in perspective, consider the following:

1. The Plaintiff brings action in the District Court in a civil action and obtains judgement against the Defendant. [Score: Plaintiff – 1, Defendant – 0]
2. Defendant appeals to the Supreme Court. The appeal is heard before a single judge. The appeal is dismissed. [Score: Plaintiff – 1, Defendant – 0]