How the law works and what it can do for you
- The law can award you money (damages) for your injuries, both physical and psychological, as well as for financial losses such as lost earnings, medical treatment and therapy, travel expenses, cost of care from a friend/ relative or a professional carer.
- The civil law cannot punish the abuser. This is the job of the criminal law. If compensation is awarded, it is often paid by insurance companies.
- Briefly, in order to successfully claim child abuse compensation we have to prove that the abuse occurred and this has led to your injuries or your psychiatric condition. This may involve interviewing witnesses and examining a large number of documents (such as social services files).
- The claims are often defended and the defendant may often try and restrict access to relevant evidence that we need. This is why these cases can take a year or two (and sometimes longer) to conclude.
- There are time limits for bringing claims and the defendant will often try and persuade the court that abuse cases are brought "out of time" and should not proceed. We have a lot of experience in successfully arguing against this but all cases are different and you should obtain specialist legal advice at the outset. We are happy to provide free claims assessments.
- If the police have not investigated the abuse, it is a matter for you whether or not you tell them now. Our lawyers can discuss this with you but there are some advantages:
- If the abuser is convicted of a criminal offence, it is easier to obtain compensation as the abuse will have been "proved" already.
- The police have greater powers than we do to obtain evidence, which we can then use in your claim for compensation once the criminal proceedings are over.