Rochester Sexual Abuse Lawyers

Giving a Voice to Sexual Abuse Survivors

People who have suffered and endured sexual abuse are often unsure if they can tell anyone about what happened. Will their abuser be arrested, charged, and convicted? Would it be shameful to admit to being victimized by an abuser? All of these questions and more can understandably race through your head if you are a sexual abuse survivor.

Our Rochester sexual abuse attorneys from Horn Wright, LLP are here to tell you that you can speak up, take action, and demand justice with our help. A recent update of New York’s laws – the New York Child Victims Act – allows you to seek compensation through a civil claim filed against your abuser if you are under the age of 55. While no amount of money can undo the harm a sexual abuser has inflicted on you, it can give you much-needed financial stability and a welcome sense of closure.

Speak with a Rochester sexual assault attorney from our firm today. Call (585) 245-0255.

More About the Child Victims Act

Despite the Child Victims Act’s namesake, it is actually geared to help adults take legal action years after they endured sexual abuse as a child. Previously, statutes of limitations made it incredibly difficult if not impossible for adults to come forward and hold an abuser accountable, even when the evidence of sexual abuse was clear. Under the Child Victims Act, previously blocked claims have been revived.

Key details of the Child Victims Act:

• New claims can be brought forth until August 13^th, 2021. This statute of limitations can be extended by state-level legislators as its deadline approaches.
• Sexual abuse claims can be brought against sexual abusers and any employer or organization that harbored, protected, or enabled them to commit sexual abuse. Schools, churches, and youth clubs have been named as defendants in many sexual abuse claims in recent years.

Damages You Can Demand from Your Abuser

In a sexual abuse claim based on incidents that occurred many years ago, most damages you can demand will be noneconomic. In New York, noneconomic damage is a type of damage associated with pain, suffering, and lasting emotional trauma. Sexual abuse survivors from all walks of life and who have suffered various types of sexual abuse consistently report being haunted by the trauma for the rest of their lives.

Sexual abuse can leave a survivor emotionally scarred and cause:

• Fear when around people who resemble their abuser
• Difficulty starting a romantic or sexual relationship with anyone
• Extreme social anxiety when in public
• Insomnia and night terrors

As your Rochester sexual abuse lawyers, we will dedicate ourselves to pursuing maximized compensation on your behalf. In addition to noneconomic damages, we might be able to seek punitive damages, which are used by courts to penalize defendants who have committed egregious wrongdoings. Lastly, it might be possible to collect economic damages, like the cost of therapy sessions you have used since you were sexually abused.

Please Remember That You are Not Alone

Standing up for yourself as a sexual abuse survivor can be especially difficult if your trauma makes you think that you are alone. Please remember that not only are there people out there who want to help you seek justice, like our Rochester sexual abuse attorneys from Horn Wright, LLP, but also there are many others who have survived abuse as you have.

Crimes Against Children Research Center data estimates that about 30% of children will be sexually abused by the time they turn 17, with the majority of abuse incidents happen when children are aged between 7 and 13. The Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network also estimates that more than 6 children in the country are sexually abused each hour. While these statistics are harrowing, they mean that you are not alone – and that the fight to stop sexual abuse is one that must continue to grow in strength.

Thanks to our decades of collective legal experience, we have the power to give sexual abuse survivors in Rochester a chance to find justice and leave more of their trauma behind them. In and out of the courtroom, sexual abusers and the organizations that harbor them can put up a fight. We are always prepared for whatever they can throw at us. When something so important hangs in the balance, we do not back down!

Contact our law firm in Rochester, New York to speak with a sexual abuse lawyer about your legal options.