Child Victims Act Passes in New York

Help for Child Sex Abuse Survivors

For too many years, too many victims of child sexual abuse have been barred from bringing claims because too much time has passed. New York has had a statute of limitations in place that disallowed adult survivors of child sexual abuse to bring legal action against their abusers after they have reached a certain age.

For many survivors of this terrible crime, it takes years to work through the psychological pain and turmoil and gather up the courage to come forward with a claim. Unfortunately, the state of limitations prevented people in this situation from bringing a claim. At last, this legal limitation has been lifted.

A New Law: Statute of Limitations Extended

Just this week, New York has passed The Child Victims Act, according to CNN. This new law does two important things for adult survivors of child sexual abuse:

1. Extending the statute of limitations: Formerly, the statute of limitations for these cases prohibited civil and criminal claims after the victim turned 23 years of age. With the new law, survivors can bring criminal charges up to age 28 and civil claims until age 55.
2. Opening a time window for formerly barred claims: In addition, the new law also “also includes a one-year window during which victims of any age or time limit can come forward to prosecute.”

For many survivors of child sexual abuse, this new legislation is a great source of hope and potential compensation and justice.

If you are a survivor of child sexual abuse formerly barred from bringing a claim from the old statute of limitations, do not delay. The one-year window is open and you need to talk with an attorney as soon as possible to bring a claim.

Working with an experienced, professional legal team is the best chance you have to obtain justice and compensation, so do not delay.