Sexual Abuse Lawyer Cambridge MA | Injury Lawyer Team

The effects of sexual abuse can impact your physical, emotional, and mental well-being, and Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers are committed to supporting abuse survivors.

According to the Cambridge Police Department, violent crime in the area is increasing, including rape. [1] Clergy sexual abuse remains a concern for many. If you find yourself the victim of sexual abuse, we can help you seek justice and start the healing process.

WE ARE ONLY ACCEPTING SEXUAL ABUSE CASES INVOLVING INSTITUTIONS.

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IF YOU HAVE A MATTER INVOLVING A RELATIVE OR ACQUAINTANCE, PLEASE CONTACT YOUR LOCAL BAR ASSOCIATION

Why Choose Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers

At Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers, we are committed to partnering with our clients to get the highest compensation for their cases. We do our best to cover their medical expenses, therapy costs, lost wages, and pain and suffering entirely under their settlement.

$21 Million Hotel sexual assault case	$15 Million Coach grooming and abuse	$7 Million Cruise ship rape settlement
$6 Million Negligent security assault	$6 Million Child sexual abuse lawsuit	$5 Million Therapist sexual abuse settlement

Our compassionate and experienced legal team fights relentlessly to protect your rights. We work to provide the strongest legal defense we can to help you win. Our law firm does what it takes to help promote your financial recovery and allow you the space to prioritize your healing through the entire process.

Understanding Sexual Abuse and Assault

As you look to understand sexual abuse and sexual assault in Cambridge, you’ll want to keep in mind that these are not explicitly defined by Massachusetts law. Instead, they fall under broader legal buckets.

In general, sexual abuse and assault are part of the following legal definitions.

• Sexual Abuse: Sexual abuse is when a person engages in unwanted sexual activity without their knowledge or consent. Sexual abuse can also include exploitation. [2]
• Indecent Sexual Assault and Battery: Indecent sexual assault and battery is when a person touches the victim inappropriately without consent. This includes touching their private parts, stomach, buttocks, etc.
• Rape: Sexual intercourse or unnatural sexual intercourse with a person without their consent or knowledge.

The consequences of these crimes will vary based on the severity of the crime, including the damages you can recover. The common theme throughout all sex crimes is a lack of consent. You did not consent or were unable to consent to the sexual activity that occurred. It’s important to note that the age of consent in Cambridge, MA, is 16.

Common Forms of Sexual Abuse

Sexual abuse can take many different forms, including, but not limited to, the following:

• Rape: Forced, non-consensual intercourse. It is often a violent crime, where threats, manipulation, and other behaviors may occur. Rape is covered explicitly under Massachusetts law.
• Dating and Domestic Violence: Sexual abuse between intimate partners. These could be current or former people you are in a relationship with. Many victims may not know they are the victims of dating or domestic violence because they are in a committed relationship with the abuser. Still, it is possible to be sexually assaulted by an intimate partner you have consented to in the past.
• Stalking: A pattern of behavior when one individual constantly harasses or follows another. They may even share threats or sexually explicit material in conjunction with the stalking.
• Child Sexual Abuse: Abuse of a minor by another minor or an adult. This can occur in various forms, including inappropriate touching and non-contact sexual activities, including sexual exploitation. There are specific provisions for child sexual abuse under Massachusetts law to ensure all parties are brought to justice.
• Exhibitionism: A behavior when someone sexually exposes themselves to you in a public place without your consent. They often receive sexual gratification from revealing themselves. This may occur independently or as part of another form of sexual harassment or assault.

It’s important to remember that sexual abuse can occur even if no physical activity occurs. There are many different forms of sexual abuse, and we can help you understand the proper course of legal action to take based on your case. You are not alone as you navigate your healing process.

Institutions Where Sexual Abuse Is Most Likely to Occur

In Cambridge, there are some institutions where sexual abuse is more likely to occur. At Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers, we cover cases in the following areas to help survivors of sexual assault.

• Workplace: Professional settings may allow people in authority, including the head of a department, to abuse their power.
• Inpatient treatment facilities: Rehabs and mental health centers may be liable if they leave patients unsupervised, creating an environment where abuse can happen.
• Correctional facilities: Prisons, jails, and juvenile detention facilities may involve those in charge using their power for sexual gratification.
• Foster care system: Foster parents may fail to protect the children they are acting as a parent to.
• Daycare facilities: Places of care for children or adults with special needs often involve adults being left alone with children or vulnerable populations.
• Long-term care homes: Facilities like assisted living and nursing homes can set the stage for abuse by not conducting proper background checks on employees.
• Educational institutions: Schools, colleges, and universities that serve students of all ages often have cases of teachers engaging in sexual activity with students.
• Religious institutions: Sexual abuse is rampant throughout the religious community, and many people feel pressured to avoid talking about problems with clergy members.
• Sports clubs: Private, public, and school teams leave coaches unattended with children for long periods. Predators may use this as an opportunity to groom children.
• Military institutions: High-ranking officers may use their power to sexually abuse those lower on the hierarchy than themselves.
• Hospitality industry: Short-term rentals and hotels are often liable when they fail to perform thorough background checks on employees.
• Shelters: Homeless shelters often face staffing issues, making it challenging to supervise residents properly.
• Medical field: Medical professionals may use their authority to have sexual intercourse with patients without their consent, inappropriately touch patients, or watch patients undress.

It’s important to remember that sexual abuse can occur anywhere and by anyone.

Steps to Take If You Are a Victim of Sexual Assault

If you are a victim of sexual assault in Cambridge, there are steps that you can take to help protect yourself.

• Before anything else, take immediate steps to ensure your safety and well-being. If you need to leave a situation, feel empowered to do so. Your safety should be your top priority.
• Document everything. Write down all the specific information you can remember, including any witnesses. This includes the “who, what, where, when, and why” of the situation, as well as details you can remember about your abuser, like what they were wearing, if they were wearing cologne, and more. No details are too small. Take photos for evidence if applicable. You can even file a report if you feel comfortable.
• Seek legal help from a seasoned sexual assault lawyer like those at Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers. We can help investigate your claim and seek legal action against the alleged perpetrator. We keep you informed throughout the process so there are no surprises.
• Survivors in Cambridge, MA, can access support through organizations like the Boston Area Rape Crisis Center, the Cambridge Women’s Center, and NAMI Massachusetts.

Compensation for Sexual Abuse Victims

There are different types of compensation available for survivors of sexual assault, and what you qualify for depends on your case. Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers will help you recover fair compensation for your sexual assault case in Cambridge.

You can recover compensation for past, current, and future damages in the following areas if they are related to your assault.

• Medical expenses: Hospital bills, ambulance rides, doctor’s visits, health examinations, etc.
• Mental health expenses: Therapy, counseling, and other mental health treatment
• Pain and suffering: While a hidden cost, you can get compensated for its impact on your life.
• Emotional distress and trauma: Another hidden cost, our team can help you recover compensation for the emotional impact the sexual assault or abuse had on your life
• Lost wages: If you missed work or lost your job as a result of the sexual assault, you can get compensated.
• Punitive damages: Punitive damages are intended to punish the abuser and deter the abuse from happening again.

Each sexual assault case is different, so it is difficult to predict how much compensation you will be eligible to receive. Generally speaking, how much you can get in court for your case depends on the following factors:

• Severity of abuse
• Length of abuse
• Impact of the assault
• The age of the victim
• Evidence of the abuse

Liability in Sexual Abuse Cases

As we look to prove liability in any sexual abuse case, we want to demonstrate who is responsible for the crime that occurred. Some people are directly liable, including the perpetrator or perpetrators. However, institutions and other third parties can also be held responsible.

These institutions can be held vicariously liable, which means they didn’t directly commit the act, but they can still be held responsible for what happened.

Here’s what institutions and third parties can be held liable for:

• Negligence in preventing abuse: Failure to complete adequate background checks, inadequate supervision, creating an environment where the abuse could happen
• Failure to report incidents: Didn’t contact authorities or respond to the incidents when they occurred
• Inadequate response to complaints: Did not take claims seriously or remove parties after a complaint was made.

This is just the beginning of how institutions could be held liable for sexual abuse. There are also federal regulations in place that can impact sex crimes in Massachusetts, including Title IX. This federal statute prohibits discrimination against any protected characteristic, including sex, in institutions receiving federal funding, like universities. Sexual harassment qualifies under Title IX.

The power dynamics in play at various institutions often play a significant role in sexual abuse cases, which is why they can also be held responsible for sexual abuse and assault. If they did not take the proper precautions to safeguard against these damaging behaviors, they can be liable for what happens within the confines of their space.

How to Prove a Sexual Abuse Case

To hold an institution liable, you must establish it in a court of law. Here are three steps that we will take at Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers to help establish liability and hold all parties responsible for the sexual assault.

• We will gather evidence. This includes using your provided information and conducting our investigation to help build a strong case. We may be able to secure evidence you could not locate, including video footage from local establishments.
• We will prove negligence and/or intentional misconduct using evidence from the court of law. It is our job to make this link solid so the institution cannot deny they helped promote sexual violence.
• We will demonstrate a link between the abuse and the harm suffered. This will help you get the maximum settlement in the Massachusetts court of law. Your suffering can be physical or emotional. Both qualify for compensation in Cambridge.

Our team of experienced legal experts is here to help you with any questions as we seek to establish liability. We provide legal guidance to our clients and represent them in court. We use all the evidence to strengthen our case and help you win compensation.

How Our Cambridge Sexual Abuse Lawyers Can Help

Our Cambridge sexual abuse lawyers at Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers are here to help you.

• Navigate the legal system: We suggest legal action to maximize your settlement.
• Build a strong case: We strive to get you compensated for your suffering. We hold all accountable for the crimes, including individual perpetrators and institutions. We fight for you.
• Advocate: We know everything there is to know about the Massachusetts legal system, and we use it to our advantage to be your voice during the legal process.

We take our responsibility as your advocate very seriously, and our clients respect us for what we can offer them.

The Time Limits for Filing a Claim in Cambridge, MA

There are different statutes of limitations in Cambridge regarding civil cases and sex crimes in Massachusetts. How much time you have to file a claim depends on how old you were when the sexual abuse happened.

Under Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 260 § 4C, the statute of limitations is 35 years after the final act of abuse or within seven years of discovering damages as a result of abuse, whichever is later for victims of child sexual abuse. For victims of adult sexual abuse, the statute of limitations is three years from the date of the abuse. There are no exceptions.

The statute of limitations, especially in child sexual assault cases, can be confusing, and Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers can help you navigate it all. We educate you on your options and recommend the best course of action. Then, we will let you make the call about whether and how you want to proceed as you seek compensation.

Contact a Cambridge Sexual Abuse Lawyer Today!

For a free consultation, contact us at (888) 424-5757 or by filling out a contact form on our website.

Related Practice Areas

• Boston Sexual Abuse Lawyer
• Lowell Sexual Abuse Lawyer
• Springfield Sexual Abuse Lawyer
• Worcester Sexual Abuse Lawyer

Resources: [1] Cambridge Police Department, [2] Mass. Government

All content undergoes thorough legal review by experienced attorneys, including Jonathan Rosenfeld. With 25 years of experience in personal injury law and over 100 years of combined legal expertise within our team, we ensure that every article is legally accurate, compliant, and reflects current legal standards.