What does the New York Adult Survivors Act cover?

 The New York Adult Survivors Act creates a one year “look-back window” (beginning in November 2022) for victims of sexual assault who are 18 years or older to file a lawsuit against their offender, no matter when the assault occurred.   

Could I use the Adult Survivors Act to pursue justice?
The ASA could apply to you if: 

-You were sexually assaulted when you were aged 18 or older

-You are interested in pursuing a civil lawsuit against the offender or those that enabled them

What does ‘sexual assault’ mean? Does the Adult Survivors Act cover what happened to me? 
We would need to learn more about the facts of your case before we can give you a definitive answer about your unique situation. The ASA covers sexual offenses as defined in Article 130 of the NY penal code (a penal code is a set of statutes that concern criminal offenses), plus Incest as defined in section 255.26 or 255.27.

What does the New York Adult Survivors Act cover?
It includes a wide range of offenses – some of which may surprise you:

-squeezing, grabbing, pinching, or touching the sexual or other intimate parts of another person for the purpose of degrading or abusing the victim, or for the purpose of gratifying the offender’s sexual desire

-administering a prescription substance in order to sexually assault someone (attempted or completed)

-engaging in oral sexual conduct or anal sexual conduct with another person without their consent
-engaging in sexual intercourse with another person without their consent

-engaging in sexual intercourse with another person who is incapable of consent

-subjecting another person to sexual contact without their consent; sexual contact includes touching of the offender by the victim, as well as the touching of the victim by the offender, whether directly or through clothing

-ejaculating on any part of a victim, clothed or unclothed, without their consent

-subjecting another person to sexual contact by forcible compulsion (“Forcible compulsion” means to compel by either use of physical force; or a threat, express or implied, which places a person in fear  of immediate  death  or  physical  injury  to  himself,  herself or another person, or in fear that he, she or another person  will  immediately  be kidnapped)

-inserting an object or finger in the vagina, urethra, penis, rectum or anus of another person when they do not consent or are incapable of consent

-sexual intercourse or sexual contact when a victim is unconscious or for any other reason is physically unable to communicate unwillingness to an act

-rape or criminal sexual act against a person the offender knows to be related to him or her, whether through marriage or not, as a descendant, brother or sister of either the whole or half blood, uncle, aunt, nephew or niece (incest)

The ASA covers sexual offenses as defined in Article 130 of the NY penal code (a penal code is a set of statutes that concern criminal offenses), plus Incest as defined in section 255.26 or 255.27. You can read a list of Article 130 offenses here.

With the Adult Survivors Act, you could pursue action against the individual who committed the harm, or a party enabled the abuse through what they did or what they failed to do. 

This could include a:

  • Workplace
  • Hospital
  • College or university
  • Sports club
  • Business Restaurant
  • Mental health facility or drug rehabilitation center
  • Police departments
  • Manufacturing facility

It could be a fast-food restaurant or a fortune 500 company – if they enabled, ignored, or empowered abusers, we encourage you to explore your options.

You may be able to pursue justice even if the abuser is dead, the company no longer exists, or no one listened, believed, or cared the at the time. 

To find out if you might be able to pursue legal action under the Adult Survivors Act, contact us here or on 646-666-8908 and we’ll get back to you within one business day. 

How it works:

  • We’ll ask some questions to help us understand what happened, and check we are the right people to help.
  • We believe contacting a law firm should not have to be confusing, scary or intimidating!  We are committed to fighting for people like you, which is why we make contacting us a straightforward and transparent process. You can read more about what to expect when you contact us here.