It was formed in 1983 as the Conference of Major Religious Superiors (CMRS) by the merger of previously separate organisations of male and female orders.
[1] In 1990, before the current name was adopted, Charles Haughey famously dismissed a CMRS report Must the Poor always Wait?
After the media revealed the terms, this settlement was criticised as too small a fraction of the total compensation required, estimated at €1.3b,[3] and because the scheme gave anonymity to abusers.
After the 2009 publication of the report of the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse, CORI director Seán Healy suggested the religious institutes should increase their payment to 50% of the total compensation.
[5] President Mary McAleese addressed delegates at a CORI conference in Malahide on 17 April 2010.