Advocating for survivors of childhood sexual abuse
The sexual abuse of a child is perhaps the ultimate betrayal of trust and destruction of innocence. Nye, Stirling, Hale & Miller; Berger Montague and The Sweet Law Firm have combined resources to create a powerful team of our most experienced and trusted attorneys. Together, we advocate for clergy abuse survivors in New York and throughout the United States. We are committed to helping childhood sexual abuse survivors obtain restorative justice.
NY Child Victims Act
On January 28, 2019, the New York State Legislature passed the Child Victims Act, expanding the statutes of limitation for child sex abuse survivors. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has pledged to sign the bill into law.
The Act allows survivors to file criminal charges against their abusers until age 28 and to file civil lawsuits until age 55. The Act also opens a one-year “look-back period” or “revival window” for survivors of any age to bring lawsuits over alleged sexual abuse that may have occurred decades ago. The “look-back period” applies to both public and private institutions.
If you are a child sexual abuse survivor in New York and want to learn more about the “look-back period,” please contact us using the form on this page. We want to speak with all survivors, whether the abuse was committed by a clergy member or a member of another organization, such as the Boy Scouts of America. Your privacy will be respected, and your name and contact information will be kept confidential.
If you are a survivor of child sex abuse and seeking legal advice, please contact us using the form below. Your privacy will be respected, and your name and contact information will be kept confidential.
New York Child Abuse Laws
Before the Child Victims Act passed, New York child abuse laws only allowed survivors to bring civil or criminal cases until age 23. Under the Child Victims Act, childhood sexual abuse survivors can file civil cases until age 55 and criminal cases until age 28.
Buffalo Diocese Abuse
The New York Child Victims Act could have major consequences for the Buffalo Catholic Diocese, which has been involved in a priest abuse scandal since March 2018, when the diocese released a list of 42 priests accused of abuse.
In September 2018, records surfaced showing that Buffalo Bishop Richard J. Malone withheld the names of more than 60 additional accused priests from the public list, bringing the total number of accused priests to more than 100.
Our Experience With Clergy Sex Abuse Litigation
Following the release of the August 2018 Pennsylvania Grand Jury Report that revealed the systemic rape and sexual abuse of more than 1,000 Pennsylvanian children by priests in the Catholic Church, Nye Stirling, Berger Montague and The Sweet Law Firm filed a class action lawsuit against the eight Roman Catholic Dioceses in Pennsylvania and its leaders.
The lawsuit, brought on behalf of survivors and children currently in Catholic school, seeks to compel the Pennsylvania Dioceses to honor their mandatory reporting obligations under the law and report all suspected perpetrators within their ranks to law enforcement. The lawsuit also seeks to compel the Pennsylvania Dioceses to abate the public nuisance created by their concealment of predator priests by disclosing the names of these suspected priests to the public.
In addition, Nye Stirling was among the first firms in the United States to file suit on behalf of survivors against the Roman Catholic Church. The firm went on to be named to the steering committee to assist in holding the Los Angeles Archdiocese and San Diego Diocese accountable for decades of concealed abuse by its priests. This resulted in global settlements of $660 million (Los Angeles Archdiocese), $198.1 million (San Diego Diocese), and $28.4 million (Franciscan Friars). The Los Angeles and San Diego settlements remain the largest amounts obtained for survivors against the Catholic Church in the history of the United States.
Nye Stirling also investigates and prosecutes childhood sexual abuse cases against entities such as the LDS Church, Jehovah’s Witnesses, the Presbyterian Church, the Boy Scouts of America, and any other organization where child sexual abuse occurs.
Clergy Abuse Survivors
We understand the difficulty that comes with facing a past of childhood sexual abuse, whether from clergy members, Scout leaders, or adults in other organizations. We are here to work with you and your family to provide you with all the resources you need during this process.
Once you submit the form on this page, one of our members will contact you to listen to your story. Regardless of whether you choose to pursue legal action, your privacy will be respected, and your information will always be kept confidential.
If you have any questions, please call us at (866) 614-8865 or email us at info@nshmlaw.com.
New York State Child Victims Act
Nye Stirling Partner Tim Hale recently wrote an op-ed for The Hill titled “With Narrow Window to Sue, New York Abuse Survivors Must Act Now.” In addition, Tim spoke with Marty Griffin and Wendy Bell of KDKA Radio to comment on the New York State Legislature’s passing of the Child Victims Act. Click on the audio link to listen: