A recent court decision in Pennsylvania may pave the way for previously timed-out Catholic church sex scandal case claims to move forward.

The Pennsylvania Superior Court, in a three-judge panel, overturned the decision of a Blair County judge to dismiss one Catholic church sex scandal case. The judge’s argument was that the statute of limitations in Pennsylvania for childhood sexual abuse expires at the 30th birthday of the victim.

However, the Pennsylvania judges said in their 38-page opinion that the church had apparently failed to notify parishioners of allegations of abuse, which raised questions of a history of a years-long cover-up according to the Washington Post.

According to TribLive, the Catholic church sex scandal case that sparked the judges’ ruling was that of Renee A. Rice. Renee alleges that in the late 1970s and early 1980s—when she was nine years old and for the next five years—she was abused by the Rev. Charles F. Bodziak. Her lawsuit was filed shortly after the groundbreaking Pennsylvania grand jury report was published in 2016.

If such allegations were covered up, the judges noted, Renee’s suit had standing to go before a jury regardless of the statute of limitations because her claims were about the conspiracy to conceal these reports of abuse, not only about the incident of abuse in her own life.

“None of the Commonwealth’s prosecutors, investigators or child protection departments discovered the Diocesan defendants’ alleged conduct for over 50 years. Thus, we cannot fairly conclude that Ms. Rice’s similar failure to discover their alleged conduct was unreasonable, as a matter of law,” wrote Superior Court Judge Deborah Kunselman.

Lawyers familiar with Catholic church sex scandal allegations noted that the Pennsylvania Superior Court ruling may allow old claims, which had timed out under the old regulations, to be brought forward and for justice to be pursued. Other experts in child sexual abuse cases agree that this new court decision may have a dramatic impact on future cases.

“It is a dramatic departure for the Pennsylvania courts,” said Marci Hamilton, a law professor at the University of Pennsylvania, according to TribLive. Hamilton is a CEO and founder of CHILD USA, which fights for children’s rights in the face of abuse.

“It reeks of common sense, which is a big step forward in the state of Pennsylvania,” Hamilton said. “It is definitely a path forward in circumstances where they can prove that the defendant knew about the perpetrator and covered it up. It is tailor made for the cover-up case. It opens up possibilities for a lot of victims in the 2018 grand jury report and those from 2016.”

With this new ruling, Catholic church sex abuse scandal victims may be able to offer the chance for hundreds or even thousands of victims to finally have their voices heard.

Filing a Catholic Church Sex Abuse Scandal Lawsuit

If you are a victim of the ongoing childhood Catholic church sex abuse scandal in Pennsylvania or elsewhere—even if the abuse happened years ago, and even if it is outside the statute of limitations—you may be able to file a lawsuit and pursue compensation.

While filing a lawsuit can of course never undo the pain and suffering caused by childhood abuse, it can at least, help to provide monetary compensation, as well as hold those responsible for your pain accountable.

Filing a lawsuit over sexual abuse can be daunting, so Top Class Actions has done some of the work for you by connecting you with experienced sexual abuse lawyers. An attorney can help you determine if you have a claim, navigate the complexities of litigation, and maximize your potential compensation.

This article is not legal advice. It is presented
for informational purposes only.