New Law for Abuse Survivors:  New Jersey passed a law that provides survivors of childhood sexual abuse with more time to file a legal claim for the abuse they suffered.  Under the new law, survivors can file a legal claim until age 55 OR “within seven years from the date of reasonable discovery of the injury and its causal relationship to the act.”  We believe this likely means that survivors have until seven years after they have reasonably discovered the serious psychological and mental illness they suffered was caused by the sexual abuse.

If you believe this law may apply to you, please contact us right away for a free, confidential consultation about your legal rights.

Camden Diocese Proposed Settlement:  The Diocese of Camden filed for bankruptcy and has proposed paying $87.5M to abuse survivors, plus an assignment of its insurance rights.  You can read more about the proposed settlement by clicking here.

Who We Are:  We are attorneys who represent abuse survivors, including many people who were sexually abused by Catholic priests, Boy Scout leaders, and others.  The lawyers featured on this website have a wide-range of experience helping abuse survivors, including some who have represented hundreds of abuse survivors with claims against the Catholic Church, the Boy Scouts, the Mormon church, schools, and other youth-serving organizations that failed to protect their clients from sexual predators. Some of the lawyers are licensed in New Jersey, while others are licensed in other states but are willing to jointly represent abuse survivors in New Jersey given their experience helping people in other states.

If you are an adult survivor of childhood sexual abuse, you may just now be in the process of starting to understand how the abuse has affected your life. You may have also recently learned that someone you trusted failed to protect you and allowed the abuse to occur.  We are here to help you understand whether you have legal options to seek redress for the harm you suffered. Please contact us today for a free, confidential consultation.

Read and Watch Interviews with Our Attorneys and Clients: Some of our clients have decided to speak publicly about the legal claims they are filing under New Jersey’s law for survivors of childhood sexual abuse.  The statute of limitations “window” closes on December 1, 2021.  You can read and watch interviews with them and some of our attorneys by clicking these links:

NJ.com:  “N.J. courts face surge of lawsuits as new sex abuse law takes effect”

NJTV:  “For those claiming clergy abuse, a window long shut is about to open”

WHYY:  “Flood of lawsuits expected as N.J. opens window for sex abuse survivors”

AP:  “Lawsuit wave expected as New Jersey eases sex abuse limits”

NorthJersey.com:  “What to expect when alleged abuse victims can begin suing the clergy this Sunday”

Telegram.com:  “New Jersey law may offer Worcester area Boy Scout abuse victims hope”

SouthCoastToday.com:  “New Jersey law give Boy Scout abuse victims legal recourse”

NJ.com:  “Here’s why N.J. may be hit with more Boy Scout sex abuse lawsuits than any other state”

Interview with One of Our Attorneys About the Catholic Church’s “Secret Files”:  One of our attorneys, Jay Mascolo, was recently interviewed by NorthJersey.com about the importance of the Catholic Church’s “secret files.”  You can read the full story by clicking here.

Caution About the Catholic Church’s “Independent Victim Compensation Program”:  We have very strong feelings about the “independent” settlement program that has been established by the Catholic Church in New Jersey based on our experience with dozens of clients who have participated in such programs in other states, including programs being run by the same people who are running the program in New Jersey.  Please click here to learn more about our thoughts, and please contact us if you want to learn more.  There is no charge for speaking with us.

Boy Scout Claim Numbers in New Jersey:  On March 11, 2021, the “Tort Claimants Committee,” which is a committee of abuse survivors appointed by the bankruptcy court to represent the interests of all abuse survivors, published a report that details the approximate number of claims filed in each state, the number of claims filed against each local council, and the number of claims filed against each chartering organization.  Please click here to read more about the TCC’s report, including the almost 10,000 claims that have been filed as a result of alleged Boy Scout abuse in New Jersey.

Boy Scout Abuse Survivors — Protect Your Legal Rights as to Local Councils and Sponsoring Orgs:  Many abuse survivors in New Jersey remain unaware that they likely have a claim against the local council and/or chartering organization that was responsible for their Scouting unit.  More importantly, many abuse survivors also do not realize that they may need to take steps to protect their legal rights against those entities — filing a claim in the bankruptcy court did not protect those rights.  If you need more information about these issues please contact us to make sure you know your legal options, and be aware that some lawyers are not advising their clients of these claims or the need to take steps to protect them.

First Lawsuits Filed:  On December 1, 2019, we filed some of the first lawsuits against the Catholic Church and Boy Scouts under New Jersey’s new law for survivors of childhood sexual abuse.  The new law allows all abuse survivors, regardless of their current age, a limited time to pursue a lawsuit for the abuse they suffered.  If you or someone you love was sexually abused as a child, please contact us to learn your legal options and to ensure your rights are protected.  You are not alone and it was not your fault.

Governor Murphy Signs Law Giving New Rights to Abuse Survivors!! On May 13, 2019, Governor Murphy signed New Jersey’s historic new law for survivors of childhood sexual abuse.  Most importantly, the new law gives all abuse survivors two years to file a claim for the abuse they suffered, regardless of their current age, and extends the statute of limitations to age 55.  However, those time limits could be significantly shortened if the defendant in a person’s case files for bankruptcy.  Please contact us to learn your options and ensure your legal rights are protected!

Catholic Church Releases List of Almost 200 Priests and Others: The Catholic Church in New Jersey released a list of almost 200 priests and others who it concluded have been the subject of credible allegations of child sexual abuse.  Please click here to learn more and to see the lists.

When a child survives abuse by a person in a position of trust and authority, the resulting harm and damage can last a lifetime.  But even as an adult, most abuse survivors do not realize how they were harmed, and many continue to believe it was their fault.  If you were sexually abused as a child, it was not your fault and you are not alone.

Boy Scout Perversion Files:  Some of our attorneys obtained the Boy Scouts’ “ineligible volunteer” files almost two decades ago and we have used them in many cases.  You can read more about the files by clicking here.  Please know that these files are not “new” so any recent reports claiming they are “new” is not accurate.  Please also know the files are not complete — they are missing more than a decade of files in more recent years, and the Boy Scouts had a long policy of destroying files after people were deceased.  We have represented many abuse survivors who were abused by Scout leaders who were not in the files.  Please contact us if you want to learn more.