Sexual Abuse Lawyer Yonkers NY

Crimes like sexual assault and abuse are experiences no one should ever have to endure. When these violations occur, the attorneys at Injury Lawyer Team will be your dedicated and compassionate ally in pursuing a civil lawsuit, providing unwavering support as you seek justice and compensation for the harm you’ve suffered.

We understand how delicate these cases can be, so we’ll use our expertise and empathy to ensure we handle your case the way it should be. We’re prepared to settle for compensation or fight for your rights in the courtroom.

Why Choose Injury Lawyer Team

Rosenfeld Injury Layers is one of the top sexual abuse and assault law firms in Yonkers, New York. We’ve settled several similar cases to obtain the compensation the survivor needs to rebuild their life. Everyone at our firm has the experience and compassion necessary for these

We have a proven track record of securing high settlements for our sexual abuse and assault clients. We pride ourselves on being the committed legal representation they need to provide guidance on proceeding with the lawsuit.

Understanding Sexual Abuse and Assault

In civil law, sexual abuse in New York refers to any non-consensual sexual contact, while sexual assault involves any non-consensual sexual act. Both types of abuse can vary in severity, and survivors have the right to seek justice and compensation through civil claims.

These offenses range from what many would consider obvious, such as rape and sexual assault, to less overt actions like making unwanted sexual comments or sharing explicit images of someone without their consent. The key factor that defines these acts as sexual abuse or assault is the absence of consent.

In civil claims, even if someone verbally agrees but is too intoxicated or impaired to provide valid consent, it is not considered consent. New York law states that the age of consent is 17, meaning anyone under that age cannot legally agree to sexual acts.

However, the Romeo and Juliet Law exists to protect teenagers in consensual relationships. Under this law, if the younger individual is at least 15 and the older person is within five years of age, the relationship is not treated the same as criminal sexual offenses. This protects teens from facing severe penalties when engaging in consensual relationships.

Power imbalances are often a significant factor in sexual abuse and assault cases. In many instances, particularly in childhood sexual abuse cases, an adult may take advantage of or groom a child.

These imbalances can also exist between adults in situations where one party holds significant authority or influence over the other, further complicating the question of consent. Civil law allows survivors of these acts to hold perpetrators accountable and seek restitution for their suffering.

Common Forms of Sexual Abuse

Since sexual abuse and assault are terms that encompass a variety of misconduct, understanding the main ones that they encompass can not only help survivors realize what happened to them but also help others spot signs that it’s happening to someone else. At Injury Lawyer Team, some of the most common forms of sexual abuse we’ve seen are:

• Incest: When two family members engage in sexual behaviors and act with one another. Typically, this is between an adult and a child, but it can be between two family members with a power imbalance.
• Rape and Sexual Assault: This is non-consensual penetration on any part of the body and with any level of force.
• Sexual Harassment: Unwanted sexual comments and actions among two people. It can be things like sexual jokes and above-the-clothes touching.
• Childhood Sexual Abuse: Any sexual acts between an adult and someone under the age of 17.
• Statutory Rape: Due to age or mental deficits, some people cannot legally consent. This is usually between an adult and a teenager who says they want to engage in sexual actions, but because of their age, they can’t legally consent.
• Exhibitionism: Purposefully showing off one’s genitals to others in public or anywhere without their consent.
• Voyeurism: Knowingly watching someone have sexual relations or undressing without them knowing or consenting to someone watching.
• Drug-Facilitated Sexual Assault: The use of alcohol or drugs to incapacitate someone so they can use them for sexual acts.

Institutions Where Sexual Abuse Is Most Likely to Occur

Sexual assault and abuse can happen anywhere. As top sexual abuse and assault attorneys in Yonkers, New York, we’ve seen evidence that sexual abuse and assault often happen at specific institutions. Our attorneys have experience handling cases of abuse at:

• Educational Institutions: Schools, ranging in age from elementary to college, see sexual abuse and assault cases.
• Religious Institutions: Clergy abuse within the Catholic Church is more well-known, but it can happen at any religious institution.
• Nursing Homes: Elder abuse often gets swept under the rug, but we’ll be ready to hold whoever committed the crime accountable.
• Sports Clubs: Athletes of all ages are around their teammates, coaches, and team doctors constantly, allowing for sexual abuse and assault to happen potentially.
• Workplace: We see a lot of sexual harassment cases happen within the workplace, whether it’s a construction site or a corporate company.
• Inpatient Treatment Facilities: Those in inpatient treatment facilities are often sexually abused because they’re considered vulnerable individuals.
• Prisons and Correctional Facilities: Prisoners and correctional officers alike are subjected to sexual abuse and assault within our prison system.
• Foster Care: Those in foster care are there to avoid unsafe environments, but sometimes placements can lead to sexual abuse and assault for foster children.
• Daycare Facilities: Guardians should be able to leave their children at daycare facilities without worrying about their safety, but sexual abuse and assault happen in these facilities.
• Military Institutions: Most military sexual abuse or assault cases are either kept quiet or dealt with in military court, but we’re ready to help protect the rights of the men and women who serve our country.
• Hotels and Short-Term Rentals: These locations are transient, which can be a breeding ground for sexual assault and abuse.
• Shelters: We’re here to help protect the rights of those who are seeking a safe place to stay in shelters but are sexually assaulted or abused.

Steps to Take If You Are a Victim of Sexual Assault

What goes on in your mind after being sexually assaulted can vary, but knowing what you should do can help prepare yourself for the future or help a loved one. Some things to do afterward include:

• Find Somewhere Safe: If you can, get to a safe place to wait for the police. Remove yourself from the situation, or call 911.
• Go to the Hospital: Even if you don’t think you need to go to the hospital, you should go just in case. Plus, it’s documentation that you were there for your lawsuit if you’re ever interested in filing.
• Request a Rape Kit: These exams are intense, but can be incredibly beneficial to prove sexual assault whenever you’re ready to file a criminal or civil suit, as they can preserve DNA evidence if it’s present.
• Preserve Evidence: Avoid showering or washing clothes you were wearing at the time of the assault, as it can hold evidence to prove your claim.
• Report the Sexual Assault: Contact the Yonkers police department or sexual assault hotline to report the abuse. It’s best to call the police to file an official report if you’re ready to do that.
• Find Support: Lean on your loved ones for support or contact local support resources, such as the Yonkers Police Victim Outreach Program.
• Document What You Can: Document everything you can from before, during, and after the assault to help build a strong case against your abuser(s) and institution.
• Hire a Sexual Assault Lawyer: Find an attorney with the experience to handle cases like yours and the compassion to do so with the care it deserves.

Compensation for Sexual Abuse Victims

The attorneys at Injury Lawyer Team know that no amount of money will make what happened to you disappear. Still, that doesn’t mean that suing your abuser and the institution involved won’t help provide you with the compensation you need to begin healing. We’ve secured compensation types like these for our clients:

• Medical Expenses: This compensation will cover any doctors and hospital visits you have to attend because of the sexual abuse and assault.
• Therapy Costs: After the assault, therapy will be an ongoing process, and we can fight for compensation to help you fund these appointments.
• Loss of Enjoyment of Life: It’s hard for survivors to continue their daily activities without negative consequences, so we’ll help you get compensation.
• Lost Wages: Not everyone can work after sexual abuse and assault because of physical or emotional injuries.
• Punitive Damages: We can go after additional compensation when there’s extreme negligence.
• Pain and Suffering: This is blanket compensation that covers any physical or emotional damage done thanks to the sexual assault or abuse.

Since not all sexual abuse or assault cases are the same, some things will determine what goes into the total amount of your settlement. This includes:

• How long and how severe the abuse was
• Strength of the evidence
• Impact on your life
• The degree of negligence by the perpetrator and any institutions involved

Liability in Sexual Abuse Cases

We can hold institutions liable in many sexual abuse or assault cases in addition to the perpetrator. We can hold them accountable on grounds such as:

• Negligent Hiring: Hiring someone without a proper background check or ignoring red flags.
• Negligent Retention: Purposely keeping someone as an employee after suspected or confirmed sexual abuse or assault.
• Failure to Report: Not reporting someone for suspected or confirmed sexual assault or abuse.
• Inadequate Supervision: Not properly supervising employees with customers based on customer policies or state and federal laws.

It’s not always easy to hold an institution liable in sexual abuse and assault cases, but we will use different legal principles to help us prove our case like:

• Vicarious Liability: This principle states that any institution can potentially be held liable for the actions of its employees.
• Title IX: This is a federal law that states that educational institutions must have more policies and procedures in place than others to identify sexual abuse and assault as well as prevent it.
• Charitable Immunity: This helps us hold philanthropic organizations responsible for sexual abuse or assault if they’re involved.

How to Prove a Sexual Abuse Case

Proving sexual abuse and assault is essential in these cases to secure compensation and seek justice. We prove sexual abuse by:

• Collecting evidence of the sexual assault or abuse
• Demonstrating negligence and intentional misconduct by the perpetrator or institution
• Establishing the harm that the incident(s) caused
• Providing testimony from experts
• Linking the abuse to the damages
• Investigating the claim

How Our Yonkers, NY, Sexual Abuse Lawyers Can Help

Working with Injury Lawyer Team means you’ll have an experienced and compassionate team in your corner. We can help survivors by:

• Free and Confidential Consultations: All survivors will have a safe place to have a free and confidential consultation with our legal team.
• Thoroughly Investigating Claims: After hearing your account of the assault or abuse, we’ll thoroughly investigate it to begin building a solid claim.
• Building Strong Cases: We’ll compile all the evidence we can, including expert testimony, to build as strong a case as possible.
• Providing Support Resources: We have information on Yonkers sexual assault and abuse resources that we can share with survivors.
• Handling Communications: We’ll ensure that we handle all communications between opposing counsel for you.
• Going for the Maximum Compensation: Based on the details, we’ll do our best to secure the maximum compensation for your case.
• Navigating Settlement Negotiations: We’ll handle negotiations for your compensation and hopefully come to an agreement that keeps your case out of the courtroom.
• Fighting in Court: Our legal team won’t avoid fighting your case in court if we can’t settle it outside the courtroom.

The Time Limits for Filing a Claim in Yonkers, NY

There’s nothing wrong with not wanting to file a lawsuit against whoever sexually abused or attacked you immediately. If you decide to file in the future, you’ll need to know the statute of limitations in Yonkers, New York.

Like many other states in the country, the statute of limitations is different for people who were sexually abused or assaulted as children versus adults.

Before the Child Victims Act (CVA) was passed in 2019, those who were sexually abused or assaulted before they turned 18 only had until they turned 23 to file a lawsuit against their abuser or any institutions involved. With the passing of the CVA, these survivors now have until they turn 55 to file a lawsuit and seek justice.

In many cases, adults had even less time than children. Originally, adult survivors only had three years from the date of the incident to file a lawsuit. Similarly to the CVA, the Adult Survivors Act (AVA) was also passed in 2019. The AVA extended the statute of limitations for adults to 20 years instead of the three they had previously.

Any sexual abuse or assault that happened after the law passed in 2019 has 20 years. Cases involving abuse that occurred before 2019 still only have three years.

Contact a Yonkers Sexual Abuse Lawyer Today

Our legal team understands the intricacies of these sensitive cases and is prepared to be your ally. We know this is a stressful time, but we’ll do what we can to help ease that stress.

Book a free, confidential consultation by calling 866-757-6452 or completing our online form.

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