ANew York law that for one year expanded the rights of sexual abuse accusers to file lawsuits years — and sometimes decades — after alleged assaults took place expired on Nov. 24
The law sparked more than 2,500 legal claims, including against Donald Trump, Bill Cosby and rapper Sean “Diddy” Combs.
The New York Adult Survivors Act ran out on Friday, a year after it took effect and allowed sexual abuse accusers to file claims that were previously barred by the statute of limitations.
But it wasn’t just celebrities who were targeted by survivors of alleged abuse. Columbia University was held accountable for its handling of a serial sexual predator it employed as a doctor for more than two decades.
In recent days, a flurry of new abuse suits have been filed in New York courts, leading some advocates to argue the law did not go far enough.
“The ASA has provided an important avenue for survivors of sexual assault who previously had no opportunity to pursue justice,” said Meredith Firetog, a partner at Wigdor LLP, a New York law firm that represented numerous victims in high-profile cases, told The Messenger.
“The late influx of filings under this statute, however, sheds light on how the one-year revival did not go far enough—so many survivors are only just learning about this law, and are just beginning the process of confronting their trauma and deciding to publicly confront their abusers,” Firetog said.