The Irish Bishops Conference will later today announce details of their plan to audit complaints of clerical child sex abuse.
The plan is part of a move to deal with over 1,000 outstanding claims of clerical child abuse against various congregations and the State.
The plan is backed by the Conference of Religious of Ireland (CORI) and the Irish Missionaries Union (IMU) and, according CORI, is aimed at creating "structures and practices which will safeguard the welfare of children".
The religious groups say the audit shows their desire to deal with complaints in a transparent fashion and is a sign of their contrition.
An independent group of auditors - expected to comprise of five to seven people mainly drawn from the laity - will, according to the Irish Catholic Bishops, be given full disclosure of any information sought.
The Bishops have also promised not to invoke the rule governing confidentiality between bishop and priest, though has casused concern among some members of the Church.
The audit is likely to take up to 15 months to complete and with the final released to the public.