Weitz & Luxenberg won a $3 million jury trial verdict on behalf of our adult client who was sexually abused decades ago, as a child. Thanks to the New York Child Victims Act, our client was able to pursue accountability by filing a lawsuit against the Buffalo City School District for abuse that occurred back in the 1970s. The jury unanimously ruled in our client’s favor, finding the school district negligent on all causes of action.
“This is a huge victory for our client. Justice has been a long time coming. The abuse itself occurred five decades ago; however, our client has lived with the trauma of that abuse ever since. I hope this decision offers our client some measure of closure. The compensation awarded by the jury is for his past and future pain and suffering,” explains W&L attorney Jared Lacertosa.
Buffalo School System Turned a Blind Eye to Sexual Abuse
“Schools owe a duty of care to their minor students and to supervise those students and their teachers. If a school breaches either of these, they are liable for any related injuries suffered by those students,” states W&L partner Nicholas Wise.
Our client was just 12-13 years old when he was sexually abused by his school’s music teacher. At the time, 1973 to 1975, he was in the seventh and eighth grades.
“The evidence showed the school’s principal, and other teachers at the school, were aware of inappropriate and suspicious activity. Yet they failed to act,” Mr. Lacertosa continues.
During the two-week trial, Mr. Lacertosa and Mr. Wise successfully showed jurors clear evidence that the school district knew its teacher was a potential danger to students and did nothing.
The jury found that the school district was negligent in supervising the teacher involved, in hiring the offending teacher, and in supervising our client as a child and student in their care.
“Schools owe a heightened duty to students to act as a parent would. Here, the Buffalo District clearly failed in that duty,” Mr. Lacertosa continues.
Recently experienced sexual abuse by someone affiliated with a school, religious institution, youth organization, workplace, healthcare facility, or another organization? Weitz & Luxenberg may be able to help you understand your legal options.
Get a Free Case ReviewBuffalo School System Admitted No Wrong-Doing
“The expert who testified on behalf of the defense made some outlandish claims. He testified schools back in the 1970s did not recognize the foreseeable risk of abuse of students by teachers and other adults in positions of authority. The jury clearly was taken aback by this ludicrous statement,” Mr. Lacertosa points out.
“However, their own expert conceded there was a common practice of having two separate files on teachers back in the 1970s, where a principal would keep a secret, confidential file on a teacher — and then a file for the rest of the school district. The principal would conceal warnings or red flags about teachers. Those were kept in secret files,” Mr. Lacertosa emphasizes.
“In our case, a witness had made a report to the principal about the other teacher’s inappropriate behavior. The principal knew all along there were concerns about this teacher, yet did nothing, and it does not appear in the teacher’s ‘official’ file,” Mr. Lacertosa adds.
W&L Makes Strong Case of Child Sexual Abuse to Jurors
The Weitz & Luxenberg legal team presented a strong case, demonstrating to jurors the abusive environment the music teacher created for our client. He passed notes to our client at school, gave him car rides, and showed up without warning to his homeroom. In private, the teacher had our client — a child at the time — drink wine and smoke pot. Then the teacher proceeded to sexually abuse him.
“Our client continues to live with chronic post-traumatic stress disorder due to the abuse that was inflicted upon him. He tried to serve his country in the U.S. Army. However, his abuse caused him problems with authority figures and he could not complete his Army service. His chronic post-traumatic stress disorder is permanent. He has to live with the continued emotional trauma for the rest of his life,” Mr. Lacertosa notes.
Organizations have a responsibility to protect the people in their care. If you recently experienced organizational sexual abuse, contact us for a free and confidential consultation.
(917) LAWYERSNew York Child Victims Act Extends Victims’ Window of Opportunity
Up until the passing of the Child Victims Act of New York in 2019, survivors of childhood sexual abuse were required to file any civil or criminal charges before they reached 23 years of age. This age seems relatively young, given that many survivors need years to come to terms with these traumatic events. (1)
The Child Victims Act permits adults who experienced childhood sexual abuse to file civil lawsuits against institutions and other abusers up until they reach 55 years of age, if the claimant was born after February 1998. The Child Victims Act previously included a “look-back window” which extended the statute of limitations. Adult victims who had missed the opportunity to sue were provided more time to file a lawsuit. The window to file a lawsuit closed in August, 2021. (2) Weitz & Luxenberg continues to advocate for a permanent lookback for survivors to pursue justice.
W&L Is Here for Victims of Sexual Abuse
Weitz & Luxenberg is proud to represent survivors of sexual abuse. Our ultimate goal is to hold every offending institution or party accountable when they fail to safeguard the well-being of those under their care.
We are thankful we were able to achieve a just outcome for a client. Reach out to us at (917) LAWYERS to see if we can help you.
