Michigan Lawmakers Consider Extending Time for Child Sex Abuse Victims to Bring Lawsuits

The Michigan Legislature is considering bipartisan bills which, if passed, would give survivors of sexual abuse more time to bring their claims forward and file lawsuits against their abusers in the state of Michigan. The current law caps the civil statute of limitations for child sex abuse at age 28, which is on the lower end of the spectrum when compared to other states around the country.

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Maine Passes Child Sexual Abuse SOL Reform

Maine Governor Janet Mills recently signed into law a bill that will allow survivors of childhood sexual abuse to file civil lawsuits against their perpetrators no matter how long ago the abuse occurred. While the state did eliminate the state of limitations for childhood sexual abuse claims in 2000, that law was not retroactive so survivors whose claims were expired at that point could not bring them forward.

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Governor Signs Bill Eliminating Statute of Limitations for Childhood Sex Abuse Survivors

Colorado Governor Jared Polis signed Senate Bill 73 into law in April 2021 which eliminates the civil statute of limitations for sexual assault of minors and adults. One of the bill’s sponsors, Rep. Dafna Michaelson Jenet, said of the new law, “Victims deserve justice whenever they choose to seek it. Outdated laws won’t be able to stop them anymore.”

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Statute of Limitations Bill Stalled in PA Legislature

Pressure to change existing statute of limitations laws for survivors of sexual abuse began to emerge from the public after a 2018 grand jury report from the state’s Attorney General shed light on just how deep the Catholic Church’s cover-up of child sexual abuse ran in Pennsylvania. Three years later, efforts to change those laws are still getting bogged down in the state’s legislature.

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Older Survivors of Sexual Abuse Will Have to Wait for Statute Changes

Connecticut’s current civil statute of limitations law (SOL) for childhood sexual abuse leaves older victims of abuse without an avenue to pursue justice because their claims are time-barred by the law. Unfortunately, those survivors will have to wait at least another year to see if any impactful changes will be made to those statute of limitations laws since no bill to change the SOL was introduced to the state legislature in the 2020 session.

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Maryland Statute of Limitations for Clergy Sexual Abuse Cases

How long you have to file a clergy abuse lawsuit in Maryland is a common question. For some Maryland clergy abuse survivors, it may take years, even decades, to recall the abuse since traumatic events suffered as a child are often suppressed. Even survivors who haven’t repressed those memories often still need many years to process the pain and receive treatment or counseling before they are ready to share their stories.

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Pennsylvania Revival Window Moves Closer to Reality

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania made headlines in August of 2018 with the release of the Diocese Victim Report, which came after a two-year grand jury investigation into sexual abuse and cover-ups in six of the eight Pennsylvania Dioceses. In its wake, Pennsylvania legislators took aim at updating laws involving sexual abuse and a survivor’s ability to pursue a civil action against an abuser and the institutions that covered it up.

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How Long Do I Have to File a Clergy Abuse Lawsuit in New Jersey?

How long you have to file a clergy abuse lawsuit in New Jersey is a common question. For some New Jersey clergy abuse survivors, it may take years, even decades to recall the abuse since traumatic events suffered as a child are often suppressed. Even those who haven’t blocked those memories often still need many years to process the pain and receive treatment or counseling before they are ready to share their stories.

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How Long do I have to File a Clergy Abuse Lawsuit in Illinois?

How long you have to file a clergy abuse lawsuit in Illinois is a common question. For some Illinois clergy abuse survivors, it may take years, even decades, to recall the abuse since traumatic events suffered as a child are often suppressed. Even survivors who haven’t repressed those memories often still need many years to process the pain and receive treatment or counseling before they are ready to share their stories.

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How Long do I have to File a Clergy Abuse Lawsuit in California?

How long you have to file a clergy abuse lawsuit in California is a common question. For some California clergy abuse survivors, it may take years, even decades to recall the abuse since traumatic events suffered as a child are often suppressed. Even those who haven’t repressed those memories often still need many years to process the pain and receive treatment or counseling before they are ready to share their stories.

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New Jersey Extended the Civil Statute of Limitations for Child Sexual Abuse Claims

On May 13, 2019, the Governor of New Jersey, Phil Murphy, signed S477 which extended the statute of limitations in civil actions for sexual abuse claims.

The Act extends the ability of a child victim to file a lawsuit claim until they reach 55 years old, or 7 years from the date they became aware of the abuse, whichever is later. This is a significant step forward.

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Diocese of Providence Challenges Rhode Island’s New Sexual Abuse Law

In May of 2019 The Rhode Island House Judiciary Committee voted unanimously to extend the statute of limitations for victims of childhood sexual abuse. Jim Scanlan, who is a sexual abuse survivor, noted “This was about protecting future generations of kids, as well as enabling survivors who haven’t come forward or are trying to come forward to have a voice.”

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North Carolina Passes Sexual Abuse Law Reforms Helping Survivors

In November 2019, Governor Roy Cooper signed Senate Bill 199 into law. In the signing of the bill, which went into effect December 1, 2019, North Carolina took a positive step forward in protecting sexual abuse and assault victims. The bill closed loopholes like sexual contact under the premise of medical treatment, or consent revocation involving incapacitation by alcohol. These types of loopholes made it harder to prosecute sexual predators.

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Charlotte Dioceses Sued for Negligence; Claims Alleged Church Should have Known Priests were Predators

Last November, North Carolina legislators opened a 2-year ‘revival window’ allowing survivors of sexual abuse, whose claims were previously time barred, the ability to file a claim against their abusers. The new window has allowed two men, who remain anonymous, the ability to refile their claims after their original cases were dismissed in 2014. At that time, the diocese successfully argued that the claims were past their statute of limitations.

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Los Angeles Archdiocese Being Sued for Sexual Abuse by Adult Man

A new law passed in the state of California provides victims with a window to file claims of childhood sexual abuse that were previously time barred. One man is taking advantage of that law and in February of 2020, filed a lawsuit against the Los Angeles Archdiocese. The victim alleges that Father Michael Baker sexually abused him repeatedly from age 6 to 10 years old and that the Cardinal at the time, Roger Mahoney, covered it up. The plaintiff’s attorney, John Manly, stated that the Cardinal tried to hide what was going on with Father Baker by transferring him to other parishes rather than reporting the criminal behavior to the police.

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School Priest Suspended in Iowa for Sexual Abuse

An investigation is underway by the Diocese of Des Moines regarding allegations of sexual misconduct by Father Robert L Grant better known as “Father Bud” by a student at the St Alberts High School in Council Bluffs. The alleged abuse took place back in the early 1990’s. Due to Iowa law, criminal actions cannot be taken because of Iowa’s statute of limitation which requires a victim to report the abuse within 10 – 15 years after the individual turns 18 (depending on the circumstances.)

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New York’s Child Victims Act Extended Due To Coronavirus

Senators from New York gathered on Friday to discuss extending the time for victims to file a claim for sexual abuse. The original deadline was set to expire on August 14, 2020 but now, according to Governor Andrew Cuomo, legislators have agreed to extend it to January 14, 2021; giving survivors of childhood sexual abuse an additional five months to file a claim. The senate felt that since court services have been significantly reduced due to the virus, it was only fair to extend the time for these victims.

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Other States Offer Glimpse of Ways NY’s Abuse Cases Could Play Out

In August 2019, New York legislature enacted a new law that gave survivors of childhood sexual abuse a one-year window to file a lawsuit against their abusers. Already, over 500 cases have been filed with the state and experts estimate that thousands of lawsuits are on the way. Advocates, including attorneys, for the victims believe that justice is needed in the form of being heard by the public, recognition of the abuse, and financial compensation. Melissa Breger, a professor at the Albany (NY) Law School, agrees, “I think for a lot of these folks, it’s validation that, ‘Yes, what happened to me was wrong and the fact that I was a child and could not do anything about it is being understood now and I can now seek redress as an adult.” Ms. Breger also previously worked with domestic violence victims and victims of childhood abuse.

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Survivors of child sexual abuse gear up to file lawsuits against their abusers in New York

As of August 14, 2019 New York survivors of childhood sexual abuse will be given a one-year window to file a lawsuit against their abusers under the new Child Victims Act passed by NY legislature earlier this year. Thousands of cases are expected to be filed with payout estimates to victims in the millions of dollars. Under the new one-year window law, anyone who was abused is eligible to file a claim with a sexual abuse lawyer. Additionally, New York has gone from one of the worst states to one of the best states to file a childhood sexual abuse lawsuit.

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House panel OKs bill to extend statute of limitations for sex-abuse lawsuits

The Rhode Island House Judiciary Committee has voted by unanimous decision to give victims of childhood sexual abuse more time to sue their abusers and the institutions that shielded these criminal predators. This bill is a welcome relief for sexual abuse victims and their families. Jim Scanlan, a Rhode Island man whose account of sex abuse by a Boston College High School priest in the late 1970s that was highlighted in the Oscar-winning movie Spotlight had this to say during testimony, “This bill is important in that it allows a vehicle for more victims and survivors to come forward and really expose who the predators are, and partially to expose, those who protect them.”

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