Sexual Abuse Lawyer Paterson NJ

Sexual abuse and assault are among the most devastating crimes, leaving survivors with lasting physical, emotional, and psychological trauma. These experiences can profoundly alter the course of a person’s life.

At Injury Lawyer Team, we are committed to helping survivors seek justice and find the closure they deserve. By holding the perpetrators accountable and pursuing compensation, we aim to help survivors rebuild their lives. We are here to support those in Paterson, New Jersey, who have endured these crimes, including victims of clergy abuse, as they take the steps toward healing and reclaiming control over their future.

Why Choose Injury Lawyer Team

No one should have to deal with sexual abuse and assault. Finding the right sexual assault attorney will make all the difference when it comes to seeking justice and compensation for what happened to you or your loved one. We’ll be here to help guide you through the legal process and ensure you receive the compensation you’re rightfully entitled to.

Our attorneys have a proven track record of successfully securing compensation for our clients while still making sure that their abusers are held accountable for what they did. We follow a comprehensive process to investigate the claim while still maintaining a high level of compassion.

Understanding Sexual Abuse and Assault

Sexual assault in civil cases typically refers to any non-consensual sexual act, which often involves penetration. Many people refer to this as rape. In New Jersey, civil claims can be filed for any act of penetration that occurs when the person does not meet the age of consent or if an adult does not consent to the act.

Sexual abuse in civil law is any sexual act between an adult and a child under 18. This can include inappropriate touching, even through clothing. New Jersey law acknowledges provisions for the age of consent and Romeo and Juliet laws, which can impact the filing of civil claims depending on the circumstances.

A key element that defines a sex crime in civil law is the absence of consent. Coerced or manipulated consent does not qualify as true consent. In New Jersey, the age of consent is 16, meaning that anyone under 16 cannot legally provide consent to sexual activity. Additionally, a 16-year-old can consent to a sexual relationship with someone under 30, but if the older person holds a position of power, such as a foster parent, the age of consent rises to 18.

The Romeo and Juliet laws exist to protect teenagers in consensual relationships from being treated the same as criminal offenders. The younger individual must be at least 13, and the age gap between the partners cannot exceed four years, preventing consensual teenage relationships from being subject to the same civil penalties as sex crimes.

In civil law, power imbalances are often a factor in sexual abuse and assault cases. These imbalances can exist not only between an adult and a child but also between adults, such as an employer and employee or two adults where one holds financial or psychological power over the other, leading to situations where consent is compromised.

Civil claims provide a pathway for survivors to seek compensation for the harm and trauma caused by these acts, helping to hold the abusers accountable.

Common Forms of Sexual Abuse

Sexual assault and abuse come in many forms. It can range from anything like unwanted sexual comments to full-blown sexual intercourse where someone doesn’t consent. Injury Lawyer Team has been able to help survivors of all kinds of sexual abuse. Some of the most common that we’ve seen are:

• Sexual Harassment: Any unwelcome sexual comments or advances, whether verbal or physical, that create a hostile or uncomfortable environment.
• Childhood Sexual Abuse: Sexual acts or behaviors between an adult and a child, often involving grooming to manipulate and exploit the child.
• Incest: Sexual acts or behaviors between two family members, typically involving an adult and a child, that violate trust and family boundaries.
• Drug-Facilitated Sexual Assault: The use of drugs or alcohol to incapacitate someone, rendering them unable to consent to sexual activity.
• Rape and Sexual Assault: Non-consensual penetration, regardless of the amount of force used or the area of the body involved.
• Exhibitionism: The act of exposing oneself to someone, either in public or online, without the other person’s consent.
• Voyeurism: The act of watching someone undress or engage in sexual acts without their knowledge or consent.

Institutions Where Sexual Abuse Is Most Likely to Occur

It doesn’t matter where you’re at. Sexual abuse or assault can happen. Still, there are certain institutions where we’ve seen these unthinkable acts happen more than others. We can help survivors who have been sexually abused or assaulted in these institutions:

• Religious Institutions: Clergy abuse is far too common, and we’re ready to bring any clergy member to justice.
• Workplace: Sexual harassment is common in workplaces, but it can get worse. We’ll be in your corner whether you’re receiving unwanted comments or more.
• Inpatient Treatment Facilities: No matter what someone’s in an inpatient treatment facility for, we’ll be there to help protect the rights of those sexually abused or assaulted in inpatient treatment facilities.
• Prisons and Correctional Facilities: No matter what someone did to land themselves in a correctional facility or prison, you still have rights. We’ll protect your rights if you’ve been sexually abused or assaulted in one.
• Foster Care: The children in our foster care system are a vulnerable population, and unfortunately, many of them are taken advantage of while in foster care.
• Daycare Facilities: Your children should feel protected when they go to daycare during the day, but sexual abuse and assault happen in daycare facilities.
• Educational Institutions: Sexual abuse and assault happen in any educational institution. Whether it’s elementary, middle, high school, or an institute of higher education.
• Nursing Homes: Elder abuse is on the rise, and we’ll be ready to ensure your or your loved one’s rights are protected.
• Sports Clubs: Whether it’s an elementary-aged athlete or an adult, many are sexually abused by their team doctors, coaches, and other people involved.
• Military Institutions: No one in our military should be sexually abused or assaulted while serving our country, and we’re ready to protect their rights.
• Hotels and Short-Term Rentals: These locations have a transient environment which are breeding grounds for sexual abuse and assault.
• Shelters: Those staying in shelters are there because they don’t feel safe in other places. We’re ready to help protect these individuals.

Steps to Take If You Are a Victim of Sexual Assault

After being sexually assaulted, there are things you’ll want to try and do as soon as possible. Some steps you might want to take are:

• Find Somewhere Safe: First things first, you need to get yourself somewhere you’re safe and away from your abuser.
• Visit the Hospital: Even if you don’t have visible injuries, you should have a physician check you.
• Request a Rape Kit: This kit, while it feels invasive, is a way to document any DNA evidence for when you’re ready to try and hold whoever hurt you accountable.
• Preserve Evidence: The rape kit will be beneficial for your case, but it’s essential to try and preserve evidence by not showering or washing the clothing you were wearing when it happened.
• Report the Sexual Assault: Call the Paterson police department and file a report with them that documents the abuse or assault.
• Find Support: Even if it’s hard, you’ll likely want to lean on the people you love for support. If you need support outside your loved ones, several resources are available in Paterson, like the Passaic County Domestic and Sexual Violence Center (PCDSVC).
• Document What You Can: If you’re able to, write down anything you can remember about the assault or abuse before, during, and after to help support your case.
• Hire a Sexual Assault Attorney: You’ll want to find a sexual abuse or assault attorney who can help you bring your abuser to justice and get the compensation you deserve.

Compensation for Sexual Abuse Victims

No amount of money will take back what you went through. Money can be a tool to help you heal and rebuild your life after being sexually abused or assaulted. At Injury Lawyer Team, we will fight to ensure you get a fair settlement based on what happened. We’ve been successful in securing compensation types like:

• Therapy Expenses: Even if you feel you’re okay, we can get compensation to help support your counseling sessions.
• Medical Expenses: This can cover your hospital visit and any surgeries, doctor appointments, and follow-up visits you might have because of the abuse or assault.
• Loss of Enjoyment of Life: You can get compensation for the effect the abuse and assault had on your ability to enjoy your life.
• Lost Wages: If you can’t work because of what happened, this compensation can help with funds to support you while you heal.
• Punitive Damages: In cases of extreme negligence, we can fight for compensation for punitive damages.
• Pain and Suffering: You can get compensation for any pain and suffering, mental or physical, that the abuse or assault caused.

As we begin to build your sexual abuse or assault case, we’ll have a better idea of how much compensation to seek. Every case is a little different, so the factors that go into determining the final settlement you’ll receive include:

• Strength of the evidence
• Severity and duration of the sexual abuse
• Degree of negligence by an institutions
• Impact on the survivor’s life

Liability in Sexual Abuse Cases

While there’s always the perpetrator who we can hold liable in a sexual assault or abuse case, we can sometimes hold an institution liable for their actions. Institutional liability is another way to ensure everyone involved, whether directly or indirectly, is held responsible for what happened to survivors. We can hold institutions liable for the following:

• Failure to Report: Failing to report suspected or confirmed sexual abuse or assault to the appropriate authorities.
• Negligent Hiring: Hiring employees without a proper background check or blatantly ignoring red flags in their history.
• Negligent Retention: Keeping someone as an employee even when there’s suspected or confirmed sexual assault or abuse.
• Inadequate Supervision: Failing to monitor employees with customers or patients per company policy or state and federal laws.

When we work on Paterson sexual assault and abuse cases, we’ll use different, applicable legal principles to help us establish institutional liability:

• Charitable Immunity: Charitable organizations can be held liable for the actions of anyone involved in their organization or events.
• Vicarious Liability: This principle states that institutions can be held liable for the actions of their employees.
• Title IX: Federal law that requires schools and all educational institutions to have additional policies in place to recognize and prevent sexual abuse and assault.

How to Prove a Sexual Abuse Case

We believe in survivors, but we still have to ensure we can prove that the sexual assault or abuse happened. Proving the crime occurred means we can hold the person and/or institution liable and get you compensation. We can help prove sexual abuse and assault by:

• Collecting evidence of the sexual abuse or assault
• Showing negligence and intentional misconduct
• Demonstrating that the incident caused harm to the survivor
• Gathering expert testimony that helps prove the assault or abuse
• Connecting the sexual abuse to the damages presented
• Investigating the sexual assault or abuse claim

How Our Paterson Sexual Abuse Lawyers Can Help

If you’re been sexually abused or assaulted in Paterson, New Jersey, Injury Lawyer Team is here. We offer our help to survivors by:

• Providing a Safe Place: When you work with us, you’ll have a safe and confidential place to share your story.
• Thoroughly Investigating Claims: We’ll thoroughly investigate your claim to make sure we have all the facts and craft the best way to go about protecting your rights and holding your abuser(s) accountable.
• Building a Strong Case: We focus on creating a solid case to help prove what happened to you and secure your compensation.
• Providing Support Resources: We’ll help you with a list of local support resources you might want to contact.
• Handling all Communications: You won’t have to worry about speaking with your abuser(s) because we’ll handle all the communications.
• Pursuing Maximum Compensation: We won’t stop until we get you the maximum compensation or a fair settlement.
• Handling Negotiations: We’ll work to agree outside of court so you can get your compensation faster.
• Going to Court: If we can’t reach a settlement agreement in negotiations, we’ll be prepared to protect your rights in court.

The Time Limits for Filing a Claim in Paterson, NJ

If you’re thinking about filing a lawsuit against the person or institution for sexual abuse or assault, you’ll want to know about the statute of limitations in Paterson, New Jersey. This is particularly important if you don’t want to come forward immediately or aren’t aware that what happened to you was a crime until later.

Paterson and the rest of the state also have specific rules about filing a civil lawsuit for childhood sexual abuse and assault. Previously, adults who were sexually abused or assaulted in childhood only had until they turned 20 to take action.

Now, these individuals can take the time they need to decide or realize what happened and have until they turn 55. Adults often have seven years to file.

Understanding the statute of limitations for civil lawsuits can be challenging, but we’re here to help. Our lawyers can tell you if you’re within the legal time frame.

Contact a Paterson Sexual Abuse Lawyer Today!

We will fight tirelessly to help you through the legal process by offering guidance, compassion, and advocating for your best interests. Book a free, confidential consultation by calling 866-757-6452 or completing our online form.

Related Practice Areas

• Clifton Sexual Abuse Lawyer
• Elizabeth Sexual Abuse Lawyer
• Jersey City Sexual Abuse Lawyer
• Newark Sexual Abuse Lawyer