Ep 72 The System Isn't Broken. It Was Built This Way with Andrew Carpenter

In this episode of Conversations with Kristi, Kristi sits down with Andrew Carpenter, a South Australian solicitor who has spent over a decade fighting for victim-survivors of child sexual abuse. Andrew didn’t enter this field through personal experience, but rather by picking up the files at his law firm that no one else wanted to touch.

Together, they explore the staggering legal loopholes that allow offenders to hide assets in superannuation and avoid true accountability. Andrew shares the frustrating reality of a six-year campaign for legislative reform and discusses why the civil justice system is often the only form of deterrent left when criminal conviction rates remain so low. This is a necessary, albeit uncomfortable, conversation about the urgent need for persistent public pressure to force governments to prioritize child safety over institutional reputation.

Content Covered in This Episode

The Files No One Wanted: How Andrew’s journey began with the cases other lawyers were too uncomfortable to handle.

The Superannuation Loophole: Why offenders were able to dump millions into super to avoid paying settlements to survivors-and the 6-year battle to change it.

A "Moral Fault" vs. a Crime: The shocking 2014 revelation from a church official that child abuse was once viewed as a moral failing rather than illegal conduct.

The Volunteer Loophole: How a 2024 High Court decision currently protects institutions from liability for the acts of volunteers unless states change their laws.

Deterrence Through the Pocketbook: Why financial penalties and the loss of assets may be a more effective deterrent than the current criminal justice system.

Online Exploitation & AI: Australia’s rise as the second-largest consumer of live-streamed abuse material and the growing threat of AI-generated content.

The Myth of "Stranger Danger": Confronting the reality that the family home, not a dark alleyway, remains the most dangerous place for a child.

Signs to Watch For: Identifying secretive device behavior and how to listen when a child suddenly refuses to visit a "favorite" adult.

Why This Conversation Matters