West Kelowna Sexual Abuse Lawyers
The life of a sexual abuse survivor can be greatly impacted by the trauma they have experienced. The effects of sexual abuse can be long-lasting and can affect various aspects of a person’s life. Some common ways that the trauma of sexual abuse can impact a survivor’s life include:
- Emotionally and psychologically: Survivors may experience a wide range of emotions, such as anger, shame, guilt, and fear. They may also have difficulty trusting others, and may struggle with depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
- Socially and interpersonally: Survivors may have difficulty forming and maintaining healthy relationships, and may struggle with issues related to personal intimacy. They may also have difficulty with addiction, substance abuse, suicidal ideation, and other self-harming behaviors.
- Physically: Survivors may experience physical symptoms such as insomnia and other sleep disorders, headaches, chronic pain, and more.
- Financially: Survivors may be unable to complete their education or vocational training, resulting in a failure to meet their future earning potential. They may have to take time off from work due to the symptoms related to their trauma, resulting in lost wages. Furthermore, they may be unable to pursue career advancement opportunities because of the symptoms of their trauma, leading to a reduced future earning capacity.
Sexual abuse can take many forms, including assault, harassment, and sexual exploitation. It can be committed by a wide range of individuals, including family members, friends, romantic partners, and people in positions of trust, authority, or dependency. For example, a teacher, coach, or religious leader who sexually exploits a student or parishioner is using their position of power to take advantage of a vulnerable individual.
In certain scenarios, negligence at an organizational level can contribute to the conditions that allow sexual predators to thrive. If an institution’s administrators are more concerned with protecting their organization’s reputation than keeping vulnerable people safe from harm, sexual predators can carry out a pattern of abusive behaviour in a consequence-free environment. If an employer or organization fails to take action against a known abuser or if they create an environment that enables abuse to occur, they may be considered contributorily negligent. As such, they might be liable for damages incurred by victims of abuse within their organization.
By working with our West Kelowna sexual abuse lawyers, survivors in the local community may be able to pursue a civil claim against their abuser and any contributorily negligent parties. Our sexual abuse lawyers serving West Kelowna fight on behalf of the clients we represent in an attempt to help them recover damages arising from the traumatizing experiences they were forced to endure. Damages that may be available by pursuing a sexual abuse claim for include compensation for past and future counseling, therapy, prescriptions, lost wages, loss of future income, emotional distress, and possibly more.
In accordance with British Columbia’s Limitation Act, there is no statute of limitations on sexual abuse claims. That means that it is never too late to speak out against your abuser.
Our West Kelowna sexual abuse lawyers are standing by to provide you with confidential, cost-fee legal advice during a no-obligation initial consultation. To schedule your first meeting with our sexual abuse lawyers serving West Kelowna and receive free, personalized feedback about options that might be available to you, contact us today.
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At Preszler Injury Lawyers, we believe that survivors of sexual abuse should have the opportunity to tell their stories, pursue accountability, and recover the compensation to which they are rightfully entitled. To learn how our West Kelowna sexual abuse lawyers may be able to help you, book your free initial consultation by contacting us as soon as you are able.
