A former Ballarat schoolboy says the Christian Brothers have refused to discuss a civil claim he brought against the congregation over alleged historic child sexual abuse.

Former St Paul’s Technical College student John, not his real name, launched legal action against the Christian Brothers alleging he was sexually abused by Brothers Frederick Archer and Charles North when he was in years seven and eight in the 1950s.

John said he felt ignored after the Christian Brothers, who ran the college, refused to come to the table to mediate the claim and applied for a permanent stay to halt legal proceedings.

Arnold Thomas & Becker lawyer Angela Di Carluccio, who is representing John, said the Christian Brothers were using permanent stay applications to prevent survivors from getting justice.

“John has had to live with the trauma as a result of this abuse for decades,” she said.

She added she was concerned others had also suffered abuse at the hands of Brother Archer and Brother North and encouraged them to come forward.