Archdiocese of Newark Priest Sexual Abuse Lawyer

September 11, 2020 | Attorney, Matthew Dolman

Across 212 parishes, the Archdiocese of Newark ministers to hundreds of thousands of Roman Catholics in Northern New Jersey. The Archdiocese also encompasses four Catholic colleges/universities, 26 Catholic high schools, and 67 Catholic elementary schools. Catholics (and non-Catholics) from Plainfield at the southern end of the Archdiocese to Mahwah at its northernmost limit have, for generations, trusted in the Church to give spiritual guidance, education, and purpose to their children and teens.

Tragically, the Archdiocese betrayed that trust through its role in enabling, ignoring, and (in some cases) covering-up decades of sexual abuse of minors by priests and other clergy. On behalf of the Archdiocese, Cardinal Tobin has acknowledged that, over more than six decades, numerous priests and others who served in its parishes and schools were credibly accused of sexually abusing children and teens.

The survivors of those crimes, some of whom are still young, others who have lived with the scars of sexual trauma for decades, deserve justice and compensation for the unspeakable pain Archdiocese of Newark priests and clergy inflicted on them. They deserve justice for the complicity of Church institutions that, at best, had turned a blind eye to the abuse and, at worst, had allowed it to continue.

Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers, PA are affiliated law firms that have represented survivors of priest sexual abuse, and have sought justice and compensation for these victims through legal action. We invite anyone who survived sexual abuse by a priest or other clergy member within the Archdiocese of Newark, to contact us our Archdiocese of Newark Priest Sexual Abuse Attorneys to learn about their potentially-valuable legal rights to take legal action. Regardless of how long ago the abuse occurred, contact us today for more information.

Our Representation of Priest Sexual Abuse Survivors

Based in Florida and having represented clients nationwide, Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers, PA are affiliated law firms serving clients who have suffered harm because of someone else's wrongful decisions or actions. Our award-winning teams have the experience, knowledge-base, and financial resources to handle factually, legally, and emotionally difficult cases involving the country's most powerful institutions. Many law firms in the U.S. do not have the size or track record to pursue cases against the Church. We do, and we are here to help.

Survivors of priest sexual abuse seek the help of Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers, PA on their own terms and schedules. It takes survivors immense strength and bravery to reveal their histories of sexual abuse by a priest when they were children or teenagers. Our first job as legal counselors to these courageous survivors is to listen to their stories and to understand what motivated them to seek our help. Only then can we develop legal strategies to meet their needs, and advocate for them in the manner they choose.

Over our combined years of law practice, Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers, PA attorneys have secured tens of millions of dollars in settlements and jury verdicts for our clients. Still, we can never promise a client that a case will turn out favorably. We can, however, promise to commit our compassion and determination in seeking the best possible outcome for each client's circumstances.

The public reckoning with the sexual abuse that occurs within the Catholic Church has revealed countless tragic stories since the early 2000s. As lawyers for survivors of priest sexual abuse, we felt particular sadness at how many survivors struggled in silence for years because they doubted any lawyer, court, or judge would stand up for them against Church institutions. Sadder still, many of them were right to doubt the legal system.

Across the country, state laws set time limits on how long injured people have to file lawsuits seeking compensation for the harm done to them by others. These laws are known as statutes of limitations, and for too long, they effectively closed the doors to the courthouse for survivors of priest sexual abuse in the Archdiocese of Newark and elsewhere. That is because many, if not most, abuse survivors need time to come to terms with what happened to them and to find the strength to reveal it to others. Many abuse survivors struggle to find someone safe to tell when they are ready to come forward.

Historically, by the time survivors were ready to talk about their histories of abuse and found someone to tell, the statutes of limitations for taking legal action had long since expired.

With the revelations of sexual abuse of minors in the Church and other organizations, state legislatures have begun to address the problem. In New Jersey, a law that took effect on December 1, 2019, made great strides in correcting the injustice of survivors who lacked meaningful access to justice in the Archdiocese of Newark.

This law had made these strides by:

  • Extending the statute of limitations for legal actions, by survivors of priest sexual abuse, to the latter of their 55th birthdays or “within seven years from the date of reasonable discovery of the injury and its causal relationship to” the abuse; and
  • Opening a so-called “look-back” window from December 1, 2019, to November 30, 2021, during which virtually all survivors of priest sexual abuse whose claims had already expired under then-existing New Jersey law could take legal action for damages against their abusers and/or Church institutions that enabled or facilitated abuse.

The law also enacted protections for survivors against being blamed or shamed for the sexual abuse they suffered, and had set a minimum amount of damages in any successful case at $10,000 plus reasonable attorney fees.

These changes gave survivors of priest sexual abuse, that occurred within the Archdiocese of Newark, powerful rights to hold abusers and the Church accountable. However, for many survivors of abuse that occurred decades ago, those rights have an expiration date: November 30, 2021.

At Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers, PA, we urge all survivors of Archdiocese of Newark priest sexual abuse, no matter how long ago it occurred, to take action now to protect their legal rights. Contact us as soon as possible to speak confidentially with a compassionate legal professional about your potential legal options.

In changing the laws surrounding childhood sexual abuse claims, the New Jersey Legislature opened up new avenues for survivors of priest sexual abuse in the Archdiocese of Newark. The avenue that will best suit a particular survivor, however, will depend in large part on the survivor's unique story.

That is why the Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers, PA teams believe that listening to survivors' stories and understanding survivors' reasons for seeking help should be at the top of the list of priorities.

In representing a survivor of priest sexual abuse, we aim to provide compassionate and informed legal guidance. We think that deciding the course of action together with our client is a more effective way to reach the client's goals. A survivor of priest sexual abuse in the Newark Archdiocese may have one or more of the following options available.

Civil Lawsuit for Financial Compensation

The most common way to seek justice and accountability for a personal injury is to sue for money damages, and that is an option open to many survivors of priest sexual abuse. In exploring a lawsuit for money damages on behalf of a survivor, we acknowledge that money cannot right the wrongs of the past, and it cannot make the scars of sexual trauma go away.

However, money could provide some financial foundation to help build a new future on. It can also serve as recognition from the Church of the harm a priest caused, and of the Church's role in allowing that harm to happen.

As we mentioned earlier, no lawyer can promise that a lawsuit seeking money damages will end with a favorable financial outcome for the survivor. However, a survivor can improve the odds of a positive result if they select a lawyer who has dealt with these cases before and a firm that has financial resources to pursue an action against the Church entity.

Civil Lawsuit for Injunctive Relief

Some survivors of priest sexual abuse who seek our help at Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers, PA do not want to stop at seeking financial compensation for the trauma they suffered. They want any lawsuit filed in their name to have a lasting effect, and they ask us to help them make that happen. In many cases, we can.

Courts in New Jersey have the power to order parties to take action. These orders are called “injunctions.” In lawsuits around the country, survivors of priest sexual abuse have asked courts to enter injunctions forcing Church institutions to take steps designed to prevent priest sexual abuse of minors in the future. These steps have included ordering institutions to adopt anti-abuse procedures, and to release regular, transparent reports about their efforts.

We encourage survivors of priest sexual abuse in the Archdiocese of Newark to talk to our team about their goals and priorities for taking legal action. We can explore the options with our clients and help them move forward.

Assisting County Prosecutors

Sexual abuse against children and teens by Archdiocese of Newark priests is a serious crime. Priests should face criminal justice for those horrific actions, and often, they do. In North Jersey, county prosecutor's offices typically make the decisions about when and how to charge a priest with sexual abuse of a minor. Those decisions often depend in large part on a survivor's ability and willingness to assist the prosecutors and to testify against the abuser priest at trial.

Some survivors jump at the chance to help a county prosecutor press criminal charges against their abuser; but, not all do. In fact, some survivors would strongly prefer not to have to play that role. At Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers, PA, we believe strongly that survivors have the right to choose if, when, and how to reveal their histories of abuse by a priest.

For that reason, we believe there is no right or wrong decision regarding participation in a criminal matter. As advocates for our clients who are survivors, our job is to provide compassionate and informed legal advice as we represent them in protecting their legal rights. This is our job regardless of what path they choose to take.

We Serve Our Clients' Interests

It is a great privilege to serve as lawyers for people who have suffered harm because of someone else's wrongdoing. At Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers, PA, we always remember the day when we became lawyers and swore an oath to represent our clients and their interests. We have no higher duty than to advocate for our clients' interests in court, and out.

As attorneys, we also have the duty of confidentiality. This is especially important to our clients who are survivors of sexual violence. We keep everything our clients tell us within the confines of the attorney-client relationship confidential. Our clients can always be sure that we will never share any information they entrust to us, without first having their permission to do so.

Survivors of priest sexual abuse in the Archdiocese of Newark show tremendous courage in revealing their painful histories to an attorney they have only recently met. Our clients can always trust that we will honor that courage by keeping their confidence and by advocating for their interests.

Attorneys for Newark Survivors of Priest Sexual Abuse

Survivors of priest sexual abuse that happened in a parish, school, or other setting within the Archdiocese of Newark, deserve justice and compensation for the trauma inflicted on them by a predator priest and the Church institutions that enabled him. For many survivors, however, time is running out to take advantage of special legal rights granted under this New Jersey law.

We encourage all survivors of priest sexual abuse in the Newark Archdiocese, to act now to preserve their legal rights to hold their abusers and the Church accountable. Reach out today, no matter when the abuse happened. Contact Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers, PA online or toll-free at 833-552-7274 for a free, strictly-confidential, no-obligation consultation about your legal options.


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Matthew Dolman

Personal Injury Lawyer

This article was written and reviewed by Matthew Dolman. Matt has been a practicing civil trial, personal injury, products liability, and mass tort lawyer since 2004. He has successfully fought for more than 11,000 injured clients and acted as lead counsel in more than 1,000 lawsuits. Always on the cutting edge of personal injury law, Matt is actively engaged in complex legal matters, including Suboxone, AFFF, and Ozempic lawsuits.  Matt is a lifetime member of the Million Dollar Advocates Forum and Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum for resolving individual cases in excess of $1 million and $2 million, respectively. He has also been selected by his colleagues as a Florida Superlawyer and as a member of Florida’s Legal Elite on multiple occasions. Further, Matt has been quoted in the media numerous times and is a sought-after speaker on a variety of legal issues and topics.

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