Hillsong founder Brian Houston has pleaded not guilty to allegations he concealed his father’s child sexual abuse, a court has been told.
Mr Houston, 67, was not required to appear at Sydney’s Downing Centre Local Court as his matter was briefly mentioned on Thursday morning.
His lawyer entered pleas of not guilty on behalf of the mega-church founder and told the court the hearing would take at least three weeks.
“We are seeking a special fixture … a substantial special fixture,” she said.
“Crown and defence have had extensive discussion and it is likely to take three weeks, but we have come to a conservative estimate of four.”
Prosecutor Gareth Harrison said he would call on nine witnesses, while the defence had eight.
Magistrate Susan Horan said three weeks seemed like a long hearing for the amount of witnesses involved.
“The maximum number of days I can give you is 10. Unfortunately, if you need more it will be part-heard,” Ms Horan told legal counsel.
A hearing date is yet to be set.
The pastor for the powerful evangelical church was charged in October last year when his lawyer was served with a court attendance notice relating to one charge of concealing the serious indictable offence of another person.
Police allege Mr Houston knew from September 1999 that his father Frank Houston had indecently assaulted a male in 1970.
In court documents, police allege Brian Houston failed to tell the authorities despite believing his father had committed the assault and knowing he had information that might help a prosecution.
“Believing that Frank Houston committed that offence and knowing that he had information that might be of material assistance in securing the prosecution of Frank Houston for that offence, (he) failed to bring that information to the attention of NSW Police,” court documents allege.
The period of the charge is from September 15, 1999, to November 9, 2004, the day after Frank Houston’s death.
In 2019 Hills Police Area Command began investigating whether Brian Houston may have knowingly concealed information related to child sex offences.
After “extensive” investigations, detectives handed a brief to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, which provided advice before Brian Houston was charged.
Just days after a court mention in February, Brian Houston made a bombshell announcement, saying he was stepping aside from all church activities while he defended the charges.
Brian Houston on January 30 told the church’s congregation that the criminal charge came as a “complete shock” and he intended to “vigorously defend” it.
“In December during our annual board retreat, Hillsong’s external legal counsel gave the board advice regarding the current charge I’m facingxjmtzyw and that it would be best practice for me to step aside completely from church leadership during the court proceedings,” he told the congregation.
“So it is likely to be drawn out and take up most of 2022, especially considering the backlog in courts exacerbated by the Covid pandemic. And along with this the board and I have been having detailed discussions around requirements for leadership and we’ve talked about the effects of the situation with my father, going back many years up to the current legal case, and the impact that this has had on me emotionally.
“So the result is Hillsong’s global board feel it’s in my and the church’s best interest for this to happen, so I’ve agreed to step aside from all ministry responsibilities until the end of the year.”
The 67-year-old added he needed to be “fully committed” to prepare his case and work closely with his lawyers to defend the charge and “set the record straight”.
In September last year, Brian Houston also stepped aside as a director of all Hillsong boards.
In a statement in August, Brian Houston said: “I vehemently profess my innocence and will defend these charges, and I welcome the opportunity to set the record straight.”
Mr Houston founded Hillsong in the Sydney suburbs in 1983, while his father was head of the Assemblies of God in New Zealand until 1971.
