{"id":2089,"date":"2023-03-22T16:35:31","date_gmt":"2023-03-22T23:35:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/emeraldlawgroupcom.local\/?page_id=2089"},"modified":"2024-04-08T13:58:15","modified_gmt":"2024-04-08T20:58:15","slug":"sexual-abuse-liability","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.emeraldlawgroup.com\/es\/sexual-abuse-liability\/","title":{"rendered":"Abuso Sexual"},"content":{"rendered":"

Abogados de Abuso Sexual en Seattle<\/h1>\n

Sexual abuse is far more common than many people are willing to admit. By some estimates, nearly 1 out of every 2 women\u2013and 1 out of every 2 men\u2013experience sexual violence at some point in their lives. In many cases, sexual abuse begins when the victim is a child or teenager. And even after the abuse ends, the psychological trauma can endure for years and even decades.<\/p>\n

The criminal justice system is expected to prosecute crimes like sexual abuse. Yet we have all heard about\u2013or personally experienced\u2013cases where the system failed to protect victims. Indeed, it is often left to sexual abuse survivors to pursue their own civil actions against both their attackers and the people who enabled them. A skilled lawyer can advise and represent you in such actions. Emerald Law Group stands up for sexual abuse survivors who want to take some measure of control back by seeking damages against those who have wronged them.<\/p>\n

Civil vs. Criminal Liability for Sexual Abuse in Washington<\/h2>\n

A civil lawsuit for sexual abuse is different than a criminal proceeding in several respects. First, the goal of a civil lawsuit is to obtain damages for the victim in the form of financial compensation. While criminal prosecutions can result in \u201crestitution\u201d for the victim, the primary objective of the state in such cases is to punish the defendant by putting them in prison.<\/p>\n

Second, in a criminal sexual abuse prosecution, the state must prove the defendant\u2019s guilt \u201cbeyond a reasonable doubt.\u201d This is often difficult in sexual abuse cases, especially when it comes down to the victim\u2019s testimony versus that of the defendant. Many prosecutors are reluctant to even charge a defendant based solely on victim testimony.<\/p>\n

But with a civil sexual abuse lawsuit, the plaintiff need only prove their case by a \u201cpreponderance of the evidence.\u201d This is a much lower standard than the criminal burden of proof. It basically comes down to, \u201cWhich side is more likely correct?\u201d That said, a plaintiff in a civil case must not only prove the defendant\u2019s liability\u2013i.e., they committed a wrongful act\u2013but also that the defendant sustained some form of damages as a result.<\/p>\n

Damages in any Washington civil lawsuit can be broken down into economic<\/em> y non-economic<\/em> damages. In the context of a sexual abuse case, a survivor\u2019s economic damages may include the cost of their ongoing therapy and psychological treatment and lost wages if they have been unable to work due to their trauma. Non-economic damages is a catch-all category that incorporates difficult-to-quantify harms such as pain and suffering and loss of enjoyment of life. Unlike some states, Washington does not impose any cap on non-economic damages, meaning sexual abuse survivors may be able to obtain significant compensation for their psychological injuries.<\/p>\n

Comun\u00edquese con Emerald Law Group Hoy<\/h2>\n

Sexual abuse often does not occur in a vacuum. Organizations such as schools, churches, and employers may have played a key role in covering up or even facilitating the abuse. Such third parties can also be held liable in a civil lawsuit even when criminal liability is not an option.<\/p>\n

Our Tacoma sexual abuse lawyer can sit down, listen to your story, and help you in fashioning an appropriate legal response. So if you would like to speak with an attorney, contact Emerald Law Group today to schedule a free confidential consultation.<\/p>\n\t\t\t

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Seattle Sexual Abuse Attorneys Sexual abuse is far more common than many people are willing to admit. By some estimates, nearly 1 out of every 2 women\u2013and 1 out of every 2 men\u2013experience sexual violence at some point in their lives. In many cases, sexual abuse begins when the victim is a child or… Read More »<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":115,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-2089","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.emeraldlawgroup.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2089","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.emeraldlawgroup.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.emeraldlawgroup.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.emeraldlawgroup.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.emeraldlawgroup.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2089"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.emeraldlawgroup.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2089\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.emeraldlawgroup.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2089"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}