In October 2019, California Assembly Bill (AB) 218 was signed into law. This important piece of legislation is aimed at protecting victims of child sexual abuse by allowing them to pursue legal claims against their abusers and the institutions that shielded them. If you were a victim of child sexual abuse and your claim was previously time-barred by the statute of limitations, you may be able to file for a limited amount of time under this new law. Attorney Paul Mones can help.
AB 218 went into effect on January 1, 2020. The law provides a three-year “lookback window” for child sexual abuse claims that were previously barred because of the statute of limitations. A statute of limitations is a time limit in which to file certain legal claims before they are forever disallowed. Prior to AB 218, many victims were not allowed to sue their abusers, or the institutions like the Boy Scouts and Catholic Church that covered up for their abusers, due to the expiration of the statute of limitations.