A hearing will be held in Australia next spring to establish whether there is enough evidence for Cardinal George Pell to stand trial over sex abuse charges.
A court in the state of Victoria heard on Friday that a date had been set for 5th March 2017, according to the AFP news agency.
The committal hearing is scheduled to last four weeks at Melbourne Magistrates Court. It could involve around 50 witnesses.
Accused of multiple historical sexual offences, the Vatican finance chief and former Archbishop of Sydney has always denied any wrongdoing.
Many details concerning the allegations against Cardinal Pell cannot be reported for legal reasons but they involve "multiple complainants".
Cardinal Pell is the highest-profile Catholic clergy member to be charged with criminal offences linked to the church's long-running sex abuse scandal.
He has not been required to enter a plea yet but during his first appearance at the same court during the summer he asked his lawyer to explain he intended to plead not guilty.
Pope Francis has granted the 76 year old a leave of absence to defend himself against the claims.
Catholic leaders in Australia has expressed support for Cardinal Pell in the past, referring to him as a "thoroughly decent" man.
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