Churches, dioceses, religious orders, and faith-based youth programs are responsible for the priests, ministers, teachers, and volunteers they place in positions of trust with children, and for what their leaders knew and failed to act on. We represent survivors of abuse in religious settings across California, at any age.
Where abuse happens
- Parishes, rectories, and altar service
- Parochial and other religious schools
- Youth groups, confirmation and catechism classes, and youth ministries
- Church camps, retreats, and mission trips
- Religious boarding schools and seminaries
This applies to every denomination. Catholic dioceses have drawn the most attention, but the same duties bind Protestant, evangelical, LDS, Jehovah’s Witness, Orthodox, and non-Christian congregations, and the youth organizations they sponsor.
Who is responsible
The individual abuser is rarely the only responsible party. Depending on the facts, claims may lie against the diocese, archdiocese, or equivalent governing body; the religious order that supervised the abuser; the parish, school, or camp; and in some cases the national denomination. These claims rest on negligent hiring, retention, and supervision, failure to warn, and failure to report. California law also allows a survivor to recover up to three times their damages from a private entity when the abuse resulted from a cover-up (Code Civ. Proc. § 340.1(b)(1)).
Diocesan bankruptcies
Several California dioceses have used Chapter 11 bankruptcy in response to survivor claims. The Archdiocese of Los Angeles agreed in October 2024 to pay $880 million to resolve more than 1,300 claims, the largest settlement of its kind. The Diocese of San Diego filed for Chapter 11 in June 2024, and that case remains pending. When a diocese is in bankruptcy, the bankruptcy court sets its own deadlines for filing claims, separate from the civil statute of limitations. If your abuse involved a diocese or religious order, speak with an attorney promptly so no deadline is missed.
Deadlines
For abuse before 2024, a survivor may file until age 40 or within five years of discovering that adult injuries were caused by the abuse, whichever is later (three years starting January 1, 2027, under SB 577). For abuse on or after January 1, 2024, there is no deadline. Religious organizations are private entities, so no government claim is involved. More on deadlines.
Confidentiality
Survivors of clergy abuse often have family, community, and faith reasons for privacy. Claims are filed under a Doe name, and we discuss with you, before anything is filed, exactly what will and will not become part of the court record. Nothing is filed without your permission.
What survivors can recover
- Therapy and treatment, past and future
- Compensation for pain, suffering, and the effect on your life and relationships
- Enhanced damages where a cover-up is proven
- Disclosure of what the institution knew, and changes in how it protects children
Talk privately with an attorney
We answer 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. There is no cost and no obligation. Nothing is filed without your permission, and nothing you tell us leaves this office.
Talk privately with an attorney