MD: Lawmakers consider proposal to reduce potential of billions in sex abuse payouts

Source: marylandmatters.org 3/25/25 Supporters and opponents brace for courtroom fight if bill passes   Facing the potential of multibillion-dollar payouts, lawmakers will consider legislation this week that would limit the state’s liability under the 2023 Child Victims Act. But advocates, legal experts and, not unexpectedly, attorneys for one group of nearly 5,000 plaintiffs who claim to have been sexually abused at the hands of state workers, say the proposed fix goes too far, and is likely unconstitutional. Even Del. C.T. Wilson (D-Charles), the author of both the original bill and…

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Wicked Riches: Victims’ compensation rewards liars and cheats

Source: bettinaarndt.substack.com 2/26/25 What a story! Our media was agog at the recent NSW police announcement that they had exposed a $1.3 billion scheme for making fraudulent child sexual abuse claims. All the major media outlets excitedly reported on this huge “claim farming” scheme which recruited former young offenders, prison inmates and school students to file fake sex abuse compensation claims. At one prison, a third of the inmates had submitted claims. The investigation revealed 4,000 faked claims, with the many law firms involved paying the claim farmers a benefit of…

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NC: North Carolina Supreme Court Upholds Law That Allowed 2 More Years for Child Sex Abuse Suits

Source: usnews.com 1/31/25 North Carolina’s highest court has upheld a law that gave adult victims of child sexual abuse two additional years to seek civil damages RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina’s highest court upheld on Friday a law that gave adult victims of child sexual abuse two additional years to seek civil damages, rejecting arguments that the temporary window violated constitutional protections for those facing claims that otherwise could no longer be pursued in court. In a case involving a local school board sued by three former students years…

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ME: Maine supreme court strikes down law that allowed civil lawsuits for decades-old sexual abuse claims

Source: mainepublic.org 1/28/25 Maine’s Supreme Judicial Court struck down a recent state law that had eliminated the statute of limitations on civil lawsuits alleging child sexual abuse. The Roman Catholic Bishop of Maine challenged the law after it was sued by dozens of adults who claimed they were abused by clergy members. By removing the statute of limitations, the 2021 law opened the door to civil lawsuits for child sexual abuse no matter how long ago the alleged abuse occurred. But the state’s highest court said Tuesday that once a…

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