Orders, decorations, and medals of the Holy See of the Catholic Church by his authority as head of the Holy See and sovereign of the Vatican City State. Historically, membership in these orders was either conferred by Papal bulls not signed by the Pope or by apostolic letters signed by the Pope himself. Since the reforms of these orders in the beginning of the 20th century, the diplomas have been signed by the Cardinal Secretary of State. In general, "Papal orders of knighthood" refers to the five equestrian orders of the Holy See awarded directly by the Supreme Pontiff as head of the Catholic Church, Holy See and
Doe v. Holy See Code of Canon Law gave full authority to bishops within their capacities as diocesan administrators. In 2011, Jeffrey S. Lena, Counsel for the Holy See, published the entire documentation held by the Roman Curia concerning the case, showing that the Holy See was informed of Ronan's misconduct only in February 1966, the year "after" the abuse that was the basis of the accusation of Holy See involvement, and that the Holy See thereupon laicized him within weeks. Lena commented: "The plaintiff's lawyers never had support for their calumnious accusations against the Holy See. They have nonetheless chosen to misuse the