If you or a loved one were sexually abused or sexually assaulted by someone at a school, church, healthcare facility, camp, correctional facility, detention center, youth organization or institution, you may be entitled to recover compensation from an institutional sexual abuse lawsuit case or settlement claim.
A team of institutional sexual abuse injury lawyers and class action attorneys is investigating potential institutional sexual abuse lawsuit and settlement cases of individuals who were sexually assaulted or sexually abused by someone at a school, church, business, medical facility, camp, correctional facility or other organization or institution.
Sexual abuse is any unwanted or non-consensual sexual conduct, including sexual assault, harassment, exploitation, rape, inappropriate sexual comments, indecent exposure, sharing of sexual content (e.g., explicit photos, videos, emails, and texts) and other sexual act that occurs without the consent of the recipient (or where the recipient is incapable of giving consent, due to being a minor or incapacitated).
Institutional sex abuse is sexual abuse that occurs within the context of an organization or institution, such as a school, religious organization, sports club, camp, workplace, government facility, foster care home, juvenile detention center, etc. It is often perpetrated by individuals who are employed by, volunteer for, or otherwise represent the institution that hold positions of power, trust or authority over their victims.
Unfortunately, institutional sex abuse has become increasingly common in the United States, affecting a vast number of individuals across a wide array of institutions and often resulting in lifelong physical, psychological, and emotional trauma to the victims and the survivors of sexual abuse.
Institutional Sexual Abuse Lawsuits: Overview
- What Do The Institutional Sexual Assault Lawsuits Allege?
- Who May Qualify For a Sex Abuse Lawsuit or Settlement?
- What May Be Considered Sexual Abuse?
- What is Institutional Sexual Abuse?
- Who Are The Victims of Institutional Sexual Abuse?
- Who Are The Perpetrators of Institutional Sexual Abuse?
- What Injuries May Be Claimed In Sex Abuse Lawsuits?
- Can I Recover Compensation From A Sex Abuse Lawsuit?
- Is There A Deadline To File a Sexual Abuse Lawsuit?
- Request A Free Case Review From A Sex Abuse Injury Lawyer
Institutional Sex Abuse Lawsuit & Settlement Cases
Sexual abuse lawsuit and settlement cases potentially being investigated include claims of individuals who were sexually abused by a perpetrator(s) at an organization or institution, including at:
- Churches, temples, mosques
- The Catholic Church
- Southern Baptist Convention
- The Mormon Church of Latter Day Saints (LDS)
- Other religious institutions
- Juvenile detention centers
- Youth detention centers
- Correctional facilities
- Jails and prisons
- Other penal institutions
- Schools (K-12 Schools, elementary, middle, and high schools)
- Colleges and Universities
- Boarding schools
- Religious schools
- Other educational institutions
- Nursing homes, long-term care facilities, and assisted living
- Psychiatric facilities
- Hospitals
- Doctor’s offices (e.g., OB/GYN), clinics, therapy centers
- Other medical and healthcare institutions
- Sports organizations (clubs, leagues, teams)
- Camps (overnight/summer camps and day camps)
- Child day care facilities
- Foster care homes
- Facilities for individuals with disabilities
- Boy scouts
- Other youth organizations
- Government facilities
- County or city facilities
- Military
- Businesses
- Other organizations
- Other institutional sexual abuse lawsuit cases
If you or someone you love were sexually abused, assaulted, battered or harassed by someone at an organization or institution, you may be eligible to recover monetary compensation from an institutional sexual abuse injury lawsuit or settlement case.
Types of Institutional Sexual Abuse Claims
Sexual abuse can involve the use of force, coercion, manipulation, or taking advantage of a power imbalance between the sex abuser and the abuse victim to engage someone in sexual activity against their will or understanding and includes:
- Sexual assault
- Sexual battery
- Physical assault
- Unwanted sexual touching
- Rape
- Attempted rape
- Non-consensual sexual penetration
- Attempted non-consensual sexual penetration
- Non-consensual kissing of a sexual body part
- Attempted kissing of a sexual body part
- Non-consensual touching of a sexual body part
- Attempted touching of a sexual body part
- Non-consensual kissing of a non-sexual body part
- Attempted kissing of a non-sexual body part
- Non-consensual touching of a non-sexual body part
- Attempted touching of a non-sexual body part
- Forced to perform sexual acts (e.g., oral sex)
- Unwanted kissing or touching
- Groping or fondling of sexual body parts
- Masturbation/indecent exposure
- Sexual harassment
- Sexual exploitation
- Inappropriate sexual comments
- Sharing of sexual content
- Verbal threat of sexual assault
- Other forms of sexual assault or abuse
- Other sexual misconduct
- Other institutional sex abuse injury lawsuit cases
Institutional sexual abuse often occurs in environments where there is (1) a power imbalance (i.e., people in the institution have authority over others, such as teachers grading students, priests offering spiritual guidance, coaches deciding who plays, guards controlling detainees, etc.); (2) trust by abuse victims (victims often believe those in power are there to help, guide, or protect them); (3) access to abuse victims, often in isolation (abusers often have private or unsupervised access to vulnerable individuals); (4) lack of oversight and accountability by the institution (i.e., insufficient screening, supervision, and reporting procedures can allow abuse to occur and go undetected for a long period of time) and (5) a culture of silence and secrecy (suppression of complaints by abuse victims and the protection of abusers).
Sexual Abuse Complaints Against Institutions
Sex abuse victims and sexual assault survivors have filed lawsuits against various institutions, companies, entities and other organizations seeking to recover money damages for injuries suffered as a result of being sexually abused, assaulted, harassed, battered or otherwise attacked by others within the context of an institution.
Institutional sexual abuse lawsuit cases have alleged that institutions are legally responsible for the abuse that took place or the harm suffered due to their negligence, recklessness, or intentional conduct that contributed to the sexual abuse having occurred and/or exacerbated the harm suffered by the abuse victims, including, for example:
- Negligent hiring or screening of abuser
- Negligent retention of abuser
- Inadequate supervision or training
- Failure to implement policies to protect individuals
- Failure to enforce policies to protect individuals
- Creating a culture of secrecy or discouraging reporting
- Covering up abuse allegations to protect the institution’s reputation
- Failing to remove sex abusers
- Moving sex abusers to different locations
- Failing to report sex abusers to authorities
- Failing to respond/support to victims who come forward
- Failing to warn victims
- Other sexual abuse misconduct
Institutional sexual abuse lawsuit complaints have asserted legal claims for, among other things, negligence (e.g., negligent hiring, negligent supervision, negligent retention, negligent premises security, negligent failure to protect, etc.), breach of fiduciary duty, intentional infliction of emotion distress, vicarious liability (respondent superior), sexual assault, battery, conspiracy and violation of various state and/or federal statutes.
Plaintiffs in institutional sex abuse lawsuits have sought to recover compensatory damages, both economic damages (e.g., medical expenses, loss of income, therapy costs, etc.) and non-economic damages (e.g., pain and suffering, emotional distress, loss of enjoyment of life, loss of consortium, etc., punitive and exemplary damages, interest, costs of suit and/or attorneys’ fees.
Victims of Institutional Sexual Abuse
Institutional sexual abuse victims are often individuals who are dependent on the institution or the perpetrator for care, education, guidance, employment, or other services, such as:
- Members of religious organizations
- Parishioners
- Children in foster care, orphanages or group homes
- Students
- Inmates at correctional facilities
- Detainees at detention centers
- Incarcerated individuals
- Residents of healthcare facilities
- Patients
- Employees of companies
- Service members in military institutions
- Youth athletes
- Youth group members (e.g., church youth groups, scouting organizations)
- Campers
- Disabled individuals
- Other institutional sex abuse victims
Oftentimes, victims may feel unable to report the abuse due to fear of retaliation, shame, or disbelief.
Perpetrators of Institutional Sexual Abuse
Institutional sex abusers are often individuals in positions of authority, trust, or power within an institution or organization, and can include:
- Staff
- Supervisors
- Superiors
- Teachers
- After-school program staff
- Counselors
- Clergy (priests, ministers, rabbis, imams)
- Religious brothers/sisters (monks, nuns)
- Religious leaders
- Seminary instructors
- Volunteers working with children or youth
- Coaches
- Trainers or athletic therapists
- Caregivers
- Medical professionals
- Doctors (e.g., gynecologists, sports doctors)
- Psychiatrists / psychologists
- Therapists / counselors
- Nurses or medical assistants
- Chiropractors / massage therapists
- Military superiors
- Correctional officers
- Prison staff
- Juvenile probation officers
- Law enforcement officials
- Foster parents
- Group home staff
- Scout leaders (e.g., Boy Scouts)
- Other possible perpetrators and sex abusers
Abusers often take advantage of their power to dominate, silence, or coerce their victims.
Institutional Sex Abuse Injury Cases
Sexual abuse injury lawsuit cases potentially being investigated include claims involving victims and survivors of institutional sexual abuse who have suffered injury, damage, complications and other effects of sexual abuse, including:
- Physical injury
- Physical pain
- Psychological harm
- Emotional injury
- Feeling violated
- Feeling humiliated
- Feeling degraded
- Feeling shame
- Feeling guilt
- Feeling angry
- Being robbed of dignity
- Fearful of personal safety
- Mistrusting of others
- Anxiety
- Depression or sadness
- Feelings of isolation or helplessness
- Loss of sense of self
- Post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
- Sexual trauma
- Flashbacks of the assault
- Nightmares
- Panic attacks
- Uncontrollable thoughts
- Suicidal thoughts or attempted suicide
- Other mental health conditions
- Vaginal or anal bleeding
- Bruising
- Difficulty walking
- Sexually transmitted infection
- Sexually transmitted disease
- Pregnancy
- Vaginitis or vaginal inflammation
- Dyspareunia
- Pain during sexual intercourse
- Vaginismus
- Involuntary tightening of vaginal muscles
- Chronic pelvic pain
- Urinary tract infection
- Sexual dysfunction
- Trouble with menstrual cycle
- Fertility issues
- Eating disorder
- Sleep disorder
- Substance abuse
- Need for medical treatment
- Need for therapy
- Need for hospitalization
- Incurring of medical expenses
- Lost wages
- Loss of earning capacity
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Other sexual abuse injury or complications
Recover Compensation For Sex Abuse Injury Claims
Victims and survivors of sexual abuse who bring institutional sexual abuse lawsuits may be able to recover compensation for injuries suffered, including money damages for losses incurred as a result of being sexually assaulted or abused, such as:
- Compensatory damages for pain and suffering
- Loss of wages or earnings due to missed work
- Loss of future earning capacity
- Medical care expenses incurred or to be incurred
- Other out of pocket expenses
- Loss of quality or enjoyment of life
- Mental anguish/emotional distress
- Other possible sexual abuse damages
Non-economic damages may be awarded to compensate sexual abuse victims for the pain, suffering, emotional distress, and psychological harm caused by the sexual abuse, including for long-term trauma, anxiety, depression, PTSD, and other mental health consequences resulting from the sexual abuse.
Economic damages may be awarded to compensate sexual abuse survivors for any financial losses incurred due to the abuse, including costs for medical treatment, therapy or counseling, lost wages if the victim is no longer able to work or has suffered a long-term impact on their ability to work, and other out-of-pocket expenses related to the sexual abuse.
Time Is Limited To File A Sexual Abuse Claim
There are legal deadlines known as statutes of limitation and statutes of repose that may limit the time that sexual assault survivors and sexual abuse victims have to file a sexual abuse lawsuit to try to recover compensation for injury and harm suffered as result of being sexually assaulted or abused.
This means that if an institutional sexual abuse lawsuit claim is not filed before the legal deadline or limitations period, the injured party may be barred from ever pursuing litigation or taking legal action regarding their sexual abuse injury claim. That is why it is important to connect with a sexual abuse injury lawyer or attorney as soon as possible.
If you or a loved one were sexually abused or sexually assaulted by someone at a school, church, company, hospital, correctional facility or other organization or institution, you may be entitled to recover compensation from an institutional sexual abuse lawsuit case or settlement claim. Contact a sexual abuse injury lawyer to request a free confidential case review.
*If you or a loved one are experiencing physical or mental health issues or complications as a result of sexual assault or abuse, we urge you to promptly consult with your doctor, physician or therapist for an evaluation.
**The listing of a company, organization or facility is not meant to state or imply that it acted illegally or improperly; rather only that an investigation may be, is or was being conducted to determine whether legal rights have been violated.
***The use of any trademarks, tradenames or service marks is solely for product identification and/or informational purposes.
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