Sexual assault and abuse can strike unexpectedly, leaving long-term psychological effects on victims and their loved ones. These devastating events can still occur in San Jose, where you should feel safe and secure.
At Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers, we are committed to supporting survivors of sexual abuse, offering compassionate and dedicated legal representation to help them pursue justice.
With a deep understanding of the sensitive nature of these cases, we handle each one with utmost care and respect. We recognize the lifelong impact of sexual abuse or assault, and we are here to stand by survivors, helping them seek the justice they deserve when they are ready.
WE ARE ONLY ACCEPTING SEXUAL ABUSE CASES INVOLVING INSTITUTIONS.
IF YOU HAVE A MATTER INVOLVING A RELATIVE OR ACQUAINTANCE, PLEASE CONTACT YOUR LOCAL BAR ASSOCIATION
Why Choose Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers
Any victim of sexual violence who is ready to seek justice against the perpetrator needs an experienced San Jose sexual abuse lawyer on their side. Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers can support you in pursuing compensatory damages so you can begin healing and moving on with your life.
Hotel sexual assault case
Coach grooming and abuse
Cruise ship rape settlement
Negligent security assault
Child sexual abuse lawsuit
Therapist sexual abuse settlement
While it can feel intimidating to seek out the help of a law firm, we’re there to help you in any way we can. We’ll help you with resources and legal guidance to ensure your abuser is brought to justice. We have a proven track record of pursuing compensation for our clients who have been assaulted or abused.
The combination of our experience with sexual abuse cases and our compassion and drive to help survivors is what makes us a top choice to help you explore your legal options.
Understanding Sexual Abuse and Assault
Sexual abuse and assault are often misunderstood terms that encompass a range of harmful behaviors. These crimes can include anything from unwanted sexual comments to the most extreme form of violation—rape. What defines sexual abuse and assault is the absence of consent and, often, a significant power imbalance between the perpetrator and the victim.
Consent must be given freely and enthusiastically and can be withdrawn anytime if a person feels uncomfortable. When consent is obtained through manipulation, coercion, or intimidation, it is not true consent, and any sexual act that follows is considered a sex crime.
Any sexual misconduct can have negative impacts on the survivor’s life, from physical injury to lifelong emotional and psychological damage.
Common Forms of Sexual Abuse
Sexual assault and abuse cover various sex crimes. Some are extreme, while others seem so “minor” that not everyone realizes they are a crime. Common forms of sexual abuse or assault are:
- Rape: Forced intercourse of any kind between two people. It often involves some force, coercion, or a power imbalance.
- Statutory Rape: Sexual acts between an adult and a minor who may have given their “consent” for the behavior but, due to their age, is legally unable to provide valid consent.
- Childhood Sexual Abuse: Any sexual behavior or act involving a child, usually by violating their trust and taking advantage of their vulnerability.
- Sexual Harassment: This could be in the form of sexual favors, unwanted touching or comments of a sexual nature.
- Incest: Sexual acts between family members, usually between an adult and a child.
- Digital Sexual Abuse: Sending and uploading intimate photos or videos of someone without their consent.
- Voyeurism: Watching someone engage in sexual acts or undressing without their knowledge or consent.
Institutions Where Sexual Abuse Is Most Likely to Occur
Based on the sexual abuse cases we’ve handled, these are some of the institutions where sexual assault is likely to occur.
Inpatient Treatment Facilities
Many people take advantage of the vulnerability of those in inpatient treatment facilities, and we won’t stand for that.
Workplace
Whether your boss or coworker is giving you a hard time, we’ll help you hold them and your workplace accountable.
Foster Care
Our foster care system sees more sexual assault and abuse than it should. We’ll protect the rights of our foster care children.
Daycare Facilities
Any child sexually assaulted or abused at daycare will have our legal guidance as we fight their case.
Prisons and Correctional Facilities
Even though someone’s in prison, they don’t deserve to be abused or assaulted. We’ll fight to protect your rights.
Religious Institutions
If you or someone you love has been a victim of clergy abuse, we can help bring your perpetrator and the liable religious institution to justice.
Educational Institutions
From elementary students to those in college, we’ll handle any sexual assault or abuse cases by school staff on your behalf.
Sports Clubs
Whether it’s another teammate, coach, or team doctor, we’ll fight for the compensation you deserve.
Nursing Homes
If there’s a sexual assault case against an elderly patient, we’ll be there to defend them against other patients and employees.
Shelters
Anyone in a shelter who’s been sexually assaulted can count on us to protect their rights.
Military Institutions
We have experience defending military members who have suffered a sexual assault incident while serving our country.
Hotels and Short-Term Rentals
Even though these are transient locations in nature, no one deserves to be sexually assaulted or abused. We’ll fight to hold everyone involved accountable.
Steps to Take If You Are a Victim of Sexual Assault
If you’re the victim of sexual assault, knowing what you should do immediately after the attack is essential. It’s important for your safety and well-being and also for preserving your rights if you decide to pursue legal action against your abuser(s). Here are some steps to take afterward:
- Get Somewhere Safe: Your safety is your number one priority. If you can, get yourself somewhere safe, or call 911 if you can’t do it yourself.
- See a Medical Professional: Get to the hospital or any medical professional as soon as possible to ensure you’re okay. Even if you don’t have physical injuries, being at the hospital or medical office adds to your case and can help preserve evidence.
- Preserve Any Evidence: Request a rape kit at the hospital to preserve any DNA evidence that can be essential in your lawsuit.
- Document Everything: Do your best to document everything about the assault or abuse, including before, during, and anything else that might be important to your case.
- Report What Happened: It can be intimidating reporting what happened to you, but it’s vital if you want to seek justice and prevent others from getting hurt. Consider calling the San Jose Rape Crisis Center and reporting it to your local law enforcement agency.
- Seek Support: You’ll need all the support you can get as you navigate the waters post-assault. Consider speaking with anyone you trust or contacting resources like the Santa Clara Sexual Assault Response Tem (SART).
- Contact a San Jose Sexual Abuse Lawyer: Get in touch with an experienced and compassionate sexual assault attorney to start building your case against your abuser.
Compensation for Sexual Abuse Victims
When sexual abuse occurs, no amount of money will make what happened okay or erase it from your memory. Still, the legal team at Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers can help you in your financial recovery journey.
The financial support that we can negotiate for you includes:
- Lost wages
- Medical expenses
- Therapy and counseling costs
- Emotional distress
- Pain and suffering
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Punitive damages
Each case of sexual assault or abuse is different, and the total amount of your settlement will vary. We know this and take the necessary steps to prove your case and secure the financial compensation to help you heal. Some factors that will influence the settlement you might receive are:
- The severity of the sexual assault or abuse
- The short and long-term impacts the assault and abuse had on your life, including emotional and physical impacts
- Your age at the time of the assault or abuse
- The duration of the sexual abuse or assault
- The perpetrator’s position of authority or trust over you
As your San Jose sexual abuse lawyer, we’re committed to investigating your claim while securing you fair compensation, considering the circumstances.
Liability in Sexual Abuse Cases
As your San Jose sexual abuse attorney, we want to make sure everyone involved in what happened to you is held accountable. We can hold institutions liable for your sexual abuse or assault under legal grounds such as:
- Failure to Report: When an institution knows or suspects that a sex crime has happened but chooses not to remove the employee from their payroll or report the incident, it can make them liable for the crime.
- Failure to Train: Not training employees on the signs of sexual assault and abuse and what to do if they suspect someone committed those crimes can make the institution responsible.
- Negligence: This is when an institution fails to take precautions like appropriate supervision to prevent sexual abuse or assault. They are also liable if they create environments where abuse can thrive.
- Negligent Hiring: When employers hire people without a proper background check or knowing they have a history of committing sex crimes.
Proving that an institution is liable in a sexual assault or abuse case can be difficult, but we’ll use the legal principles available to help strengthen your case. Some we can use include:
- Title IX
- Sovereign Immunity
- Respondent Superior
- Charitable Immunity
- Vicarious Liability
The power dynamics within religious communities often place leaders in positions of authority and trust, creating a significant imbalance that can silence victims and allow abuse to continue. Institutions may fail to report or cover up abuse to protect their reputation, making them complicit.
How to Prove a Sexual Abuse Case
It can be challenging to prove sexual abuse or assault, but a San Jose sexual abuse attorney from Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers will never stray from a challenge. We can help prove that sexual abuse happened to you or your loved one by:
- Gathering evidence of the sexual assault or abuse
- Collecting documentation that’s relevant to the case
- Proving negligence or intentional misconduct,
- Gathering witness testimony (if applicable)
- Working with legal experts and investigators to strengthen your case
- Showing how an institution’s negligence led to the sexual assault or abuse
- Determining damages
- Establishing a timeline of the abuse
How Our San Jose Sexual Abuse Lawyers Can Help
If you’ve been a victim of sexual abuse or assault in San Jose, the compassionate attorneys at Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers are ready to help bring your abuser to justice. We can help sexual abuse or assault survivors throughout the legal process by:
- Offering you a safe and confidential environment to share what happened to you
- Giving honest and transparent feedback about your case and next steps in the legal process
- Thoroughly investigating your claim to gather evidence and determine all liable parties
- Dealing with opposing counsel and insurance companies on your behalf
- Working with experts to gather testimony to strengthen your case
- Negotiating a financial settlement
The Time Limits for Filing a Claim in San Jose
Whether you’re ready or need more time before coming forward about the sexual abuse or assault that happened, understanding the statute of limitations in San Jose, CA, is essential. For those sexually abused in their childhood, survivors have until they turn 40 or within five years of discovering the abuse to file a civil claim.
There is legislation that’s in the works that would remove the statute of limitations for child sexual abuse. For sexual abuse or assault that occurred in adulthood, the survivor has ten years from the date of the last incident or three years of discovering the abuse to file a lawsuit.
Contact a San Jose Sexual Abuse Attorney Today!
When you need an experienced sexual abuse attorney in San Jose, Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers won’t let you down. We’ll help you seek justice against your abuser while negotiating a settlement that will help you through your healing journey. You can trust us to protect your rights and handle your case carefully.
Contact us today at (888) 424-5757 for your free and confidential consultation with our legal team, or fill out this online form.
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