BALTIMORE (MD)
JD Supra [Sausalito CA]
April 4, 2023
The Maryland Senate recently passed Senate Bill 686, also known as “The Child Victims Act of 2023,” which, if enacted, would erase the time limit for childhood sexual abuse survivors to file civil lawsuits. Under Maryland’s current law, there is no statute of limitations on criminal charges of child sex abuse but, since 2017, survivors of child sex abuse have been barred from bringing civil lawsuits if they are older than 38. Before that, only victims age 25 and under could file such claims. The 2017 amendment was not retroactive, however, so it did not apply to victims who were previously abused.
If SB686 becomes law, child abuse victims of any age in Maryland would be able to file a civil lawsuit against their abusers and institutions that were supposed to protect them (i.e., churches, schools, camps, clubs, community centers), even if their claims already expired under a prior statute of limitations. The law also would abolish the statute of limitations for future lawsuits alleging childhood sexual abuse. Additionally, the law would raise the liability limit for noneconomic damages that may be awarded to a single claimant in an action against a private institution to $1.5 million but would not cap economic or punitive damages. Damages against the State of Maryland or other public institutions would be capped at $890,000 for a single claimant. The law would also allow a party to appeal from certain types of interlocutory orders entered by a circuit court in a civil case.
The bill has been sent to the House of Delegates, where previous versions of the bill have been passed. The General Assembly session ends April 10. If the bill is enacted, Maryland would join 15 other states that allow child abuse victims to file civil lawsuits with no statute of limitations period.
In light of the pending legislation, schools and other institutions subject to Title IX – which prohibits discrimination based on sex, including sexual- and gender-based harassment, sexual assault, sexual coercion, relationship violence, domestic violence, sexual exploitation, sexual intimidation, sex and gender based stalking and retaliation, in education programs or activities that receive federal financial assistance – should review their policies and procedures for compliance with the law and applicable regulations, as well as ensure that any internal investigations of sexual assault or harassment claims are timely, thorough and well-documented. Such institutions also should revisit their document retention policies to preserve documents pertaining to allegations of sexual harassment or sexual abuse and investigations of such claims.
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