On Thursday, New York State put into effect a new law, the Adult Survivors Act, which creates a one-year window to bring civil cases alleging abuse and rape committed in the state against people 18 years old or older in the past.
The act has made it possible for adult victims of sexual abuse one year to file lawsuits over sex crimes, waiving the normal deadlines and time limits for such cases. It is expected to bring about hundreds of cases, with Former President Donald Trump being already sued through this window by writer E. Jean Carroll on November 24.
The law in effect overrides the current shortened State statute of limitations and allows survivors to bring a lawsuit against the perpetrator and any institutions and/or employers that knew or should have known that the sexual assault and abuse were taking place. These include universities or colleges, hospitals, counselors, coaches, and doctors.
This long-overdue Statute recognizes that many sexual assault survivors are reluctant to report and/or act on the event because of shame, guilt, the fear of being stigmatized, re-experiencing the event, and depression, amongst other painful feelings. Accordingly, the ASA eliminates the statute of limitations allowing survivors to file claims that would have otherwise been time-barred. The resulting lawsuits empower those who were rendered powerless by their assailants. It allows for survivors who were emotionally unprepared to come forward, to finally seek closure by action.
