Cardinal George Pell is expected to face two trials on sexual assault charges.

The 76-year-old Vatican treasurer has pleaded not guilty to all charges, and has strenuously denied any wrongdoing.

Cardinal Pell appeared at the County Court of Victoria today, where prosecution and defence teams asked for the case to be split across two trials.

If a judge agrees, separate juries would hear allegations against Cardinal Pell about his time as a priest in Ballarat in the 1970s, and charges relating to when he was archbishop of Melbourne in the 1990s.

Source: BBC