Schenectady Child Victims Act Lawyers

Signed into law in early 2019, the Child Victims Act extends the civil and criminal statute of limitations for many child sex abuse cases in New York. Under the legislation, adult survivors of childhood sexual misconduct have a renewed right to take legal action against the perpetrator and any negligent institutions. State officials report that more than 3,000 lawsuits have been filed so far.

At Powers & Santola, LLP, our Schenectady Child Victims Act attorneys are compassionate, results-driven advocates for victims and their families. Abusers and the institutions that allowed them to commit crimes must be held accountable under the law. You deserve justice. For a free, confidential consultation with an experienced New York CVA lawyer, please contact us today.

Under New York’s old system, victims of child sex abuse had to file a claim within a few years of their eighteenth birthday. The unreasonably strict deadline made it very difficult for survivors to file a law. The Child Victims Act dramatically extends the statute of limitations to give victims an opportunity to be heard. Here are three important details you should know about how the law protects the rights of victims:

1. The CVA Extends the Civil Statute of Limitations: The CVA addresses a long-standing inequity by extending the civil statute of limitations in child sex abuse cases. Too many people have been denied a chance to seek justice. Going forward, victims of child sex abuse may bring a claim up until the date of their 55th birthday.
2. The CVA Creates a Two-Year ‘Look-Back’ Period: The CVA also provides renewed legal rights to adult survivors of sexual abuse. In many cases, vulnerable victims were unable to take legal action because the harsh statute of limitations ran out. The law creates a look-back period during which anyone, including those over the age of 55, who was a victim of child sex abuse in New York can file a lawsuit—meaning you can bring a claim even if you were time-barred by the old statute of limitations. To be clear, the look-back period is temporary. Due to the COVID-19 public health emergency, the look-back window deadline is now August 14th, 2021
3. The CVA Covers Abusers and Negligent Organizations: It is important to emphasize those individual offenders, private organizations, and public entities are all covered by the Child Victims Act. You can file a lawsuit against an institution that protected an abuser or otherwise allowed misconduct to take place.

New York’s Child Victims Act includes other key provisions as well. For example, there is a requirement that state judges receive special training on child sex abuse cases. These are complicated matters and courts must be prepared to treat victims fairly. New York courts have created procedures to ensure that CVA lawsuits are handled in a consistent manner across the state.