Bill to amend NJ statute of limitations for sex abuse victims gains backing

BERGEN (NJ)
North Jersey Record

December 20, 2018

By Deena Yellin

For nearly 20 years, state Sen. Joseph Vitale, D-Middlesex, has been pushing a bill that would offer victims of sexual abuse more time to bring civil claims against their abusers and the institution that may have enabled the abuse.

His proposed measure, S-477, would amend the statute of limitations on filing charges against child sex abusersand would raise the age threshold for filing civil suits to 55, or a seven-year discovery rule, whichever is longer.

Current laws demand that civil action be filed within two years after a victim turns 18.

“For a lot of victims, it takes many years to come to terms with the abuse,” Vitale said. “My legislation would allow victims to file a claim regardless of when they were abused.”

The bill would also allow lawsuits that were dismissed because the statute of limitations had expired to be revived.

The legislation has previously stalled because of a lack of support and, Vitale said, protests from church lobbyists.

Now, in the aftermath of the explosive Pennsylvania grand jury report, his bill has gained enough traction to win approval in the Senate and Assembly, Vitale said.

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