New York’s Personal Injury Attorneys
The long-term impacts of child sex abuse are well-documented. A survivor often deals with the repercussions the rest of their life, working to overcome mental and physical health conditions on their road to recovery.
Less talked about are the financial ramifications of child sex abuse. One study, however, begins to shed some light on how survivors may face significant financial burdens due to their trauma.
Being a victim of childhood sexual abuse negatively affects individuals as they progress into their adult lives. The consequences that follow them intervene with both their personal and professional lives.
While many men and women might not have felt comfortable speaking up or never had the chance, the New York government is now giving them that opportunity.
There are many variables that can affect how childhood sexual abuse may impact someone long-term. Some of these variables can include the nature of the abuse, the severity of the abuse, the number of abuse experiences and the age someone was when the abuse occurred. The survivor’s perspective and the support he or she receives following the abuse can also influence long-term effects.
The impact of childhood sexual abuse can vary greatly because every person is different, and every situation is different. However, there are some trends that have emerged.
Wednesday, August 14, 2019, was a landmark date in the civil justice system of New York State. It marked the first day of a one-year lookback period under the Child Victims Act, passed last February. The Act gives adult victims of childhood abuse a limited window of time to bring time-barred claims against abusers and institutions. In essence, it opens the courts to those who would otherwise have no legal recourse.
The clock is ticking. A landmark date will soon be upon us. Starting in mid-August, adult victims of childhood sex abuse can begin filing claims against their abusers and the organizations that harbored them.
The one-year window is a result of the Child Victims Act, a groundbreaking state law that went into effect last February. It grants victims a limited period of time to seek justice on claims that would otherwise be time-barred under the statute of limitations.
As the Catholic Church in New York gears up to address hundreds - potentially thousands - of sex abuse claims, one question looms large: Where will the payouts come from?
The Church is anticipating a wave of sex abuse claims when the one-year window opens under the Child Victims Act next month. The Act gives survivors of childhood abuse a limited period of time to file lawsuits that would otherwise be time-barred. While it covers claims against any organization or institution, the Catholic Church will likely be most heavily impacted, with some sources estimating as many of 2,500 individual claims against the Church and tens of millions of dollars in payouts.
It’s no secret that child sexual abuse is a widespread and longstanding problem in the Catholic Church. What isn’t widely known, however, is just how far the Church has gone in opposing legal reforms that would give victims access to courts. Until now, that is.
Its image as a safe and wholesome refuge for boys now shattered, the Boy Scouts of America may soon be held accountable for sexual abuse within its ranks. Shocking numbers have come to light concerning the extent of the abuse.
The organization has long been plagued by accusations of sexual abuse against troop leaders and other adults. Previous investigations have revealed tens of thousands of pages in internal documents, dubbed the “perversion files,” that evidence a widespread pattern of abuse going back decades. And now it appears that the abuse took place on a much larger scale than previously thought.
As discussed in a previous blog post, New York survivors of childhood sexual abuse will have an extended deadline - changed from age 23 to age 55 - to bring civil lawsuits against both the perpetrator and the organizations that harbored them. The law also opens a one-time, one-year window for those whose claims would otherwise be time-barred.
While the new act applies to all organizations, not just the Catholic Church, those familiar with the church sex scandal believe that this new act – along with a confluence of events listed below - could mean that the bulk of cases taking advantage of the one-year window will be focused on the Catholic Church.
With the Child Victims Act now signed into law, survivors of childhood sexual abuse will have an opportunity to seek justice against their abusers and the organizations that harbored them. It’s a victory that’s nonetheless bittersweet, as it means that more light will be shed on horrific instances of abuse across New York.
Previously, child victims only had until age 23 to sue perpetrators of sexual abuse. Yet for survivors of childhood sexual abuse—many of whom don’t come forward until adulthood, if at all—there is no statute of limitations on the suffering. It lasts a lifetime.
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