Northwest Florida Sexual Assault Injury Attorneys
Representing Survivors of Sexual Violence in Northwest Florida
Are you a survivor of sexual violence or abuse? Speaking up about sexual abuse takes bravery, but if you want to find a sense of closure, using legal action to seek justice might be a necessary step. At Perry & Young, we are proud to provide compassionate, professional, and trauma-informed legal counsel to sexual violence survivors who want to file a sexual assault injury claim in Northwest Florida.
We are here to stand with you, lead the way in all legal aspects of your case, and be a trustworthy shoulder to lean on during this difficult time. Together, we can help you start to find some closure and the justice you deserve by holding the offender and any organizations that enabled them accountable for the unthinkable harm they inflicted.
Find out how to seek justice through a sexual assault injury claim. Call (850) 215-7777 now. Free and confidential case evaluations are available*.
(* We understand that in some cases, women who were sexually assaulted may find it difficult to talk about what happened with men due to unintentional trigger responses to the traumatic event. Please let us know if you would prefer to work with a female attorney and female support staff members.)
Obtaining the Best Possible Results FOR EVERY CLIENT
Physical Harm & Trauma Caused by Sexual Abuse
A crime of sexual violence causes serious harm to the victim. What many people do not realize is that the harm can take many forms, each serious and potentially life-changing.
Sexual assault and sexual abuse can cause:
- Physical injury: The sexually violent act can leave a survivor with bruises, lacerations, and other serious injuries.
- Mental injury: The mental toll suffered by a survivor of sexual violence can be devastating, potentially causing anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and other mental health difficulties that interfere with day-to-day life.
- Emotional injury: It is not uncommon for a survivor of sexual violence to experience emotional harm that unexpectedly changes their behaviors toward others. Family life, education, and work can all become complicated or derailed as a result.
Holding All Parties Liable for Sexual Abuse
It’s important to hold all parties liable for sexual abuse or assault when it happens. The perpetrator of the crime must be held responsible and brought to the full punishment as allowed under the law, of course, but any organization that protected or enabled them should be penalized, too. In fact, most sexual assault injury claims brought to court name at least one larger organization as a liable defendant in addition to the offender.
Defendants in a sexual assault injury claim can include:
- Sexual offenders
- Corporations or employers
- Coworkers and bosses
- Educational institutions
- Government entities
- Medical institutions
- Religious institutions
- Clergy members and youth pastors
- Sports organizations
- Youth activity groups
- Coaches and teachers
- Neighbors and stepparents
- Counselors and attorneys
- Hotel staff
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Our firm was founded here in Bay County, and our attorneys are local and care about our neighbors and friends. Each week as a service back to our community, we answer your questions on WMBB Channel 13. Have legal questions? Tune into LAW CALL each week or check out our list of previous episodes.
"They treated me like family."
What Compensation is Available in a Sexual Assault Injury Claim?
Money cannot undo the harm of sexual assault. However, financial stability can make recovery more possible, and securing compensation through a claim or lawsuit can bring a sense of justice and closure to some. For these reasons, we encourage you to explore your legal options as a sexual assault survivor.
Compensation secured through a successful sexual assault injury claim can include:
- Economic: Tangible financial costs and expenses are called economic damages. In a sexual assault injury claim, economic damages could include medical bills, future therapy costs, lost wages and future income if the traumatization of the attack jeopardized your career, and so on.
- Non-economic: Intangible harm to a plaintiff is called non-economic damages. In a sexual assault lawsuit, non-economic damages could include physical pain, emotional suffering, mental traumatization, newly developed mental health difficulties, and other serious issues that often harm a sexual assault survivor long after the attack occurs.
- Punitive: If a court finds that a responsible defendant acted with egregious negligence, it can, in rare cases, approve punitive damages that penalize the defendant, rather than compensate the plaintiff. For example, a sports organization could be ordered to pay punitive damages if it is revealed that higher-ups intentionally destroyed evidence of a coach sexually abusing players.
Criminal & Civil Proceedings in Sexual Assault Cases
A sexual assault injury claim is brought in civil court, which is separate from criminal court. For this reason, you can bring a sexual assault injury claim against a party that is never convicted of a sex crime. Furthermore, the evidential burden in civil court is lower than in criminal court, so someone who is found not guilty in criminal proceedings could still be found liable in civil proceedings using the same evidence.
However, it is worth knowing that a successful prosecution against a sexual assailant can help strengthen a civil injury claim later. Liability and damages should be easier to establish if a criminal court has already found that the defendant did enact a sex crime against you.
Respecting Your Privacy Throughout Your Case
At Perry & Young in Northwest Florida, client comfort and satisfaction are top priorities. You can arrange a free and confidential case evaluation to learn more about your options if you want to file a sexual abuse or sexual assault injury claim. We can also discuss your options to keep information about your case as confidential as possible because we know that speaking up can be intimidating, especially if you would rather not allow others in your life to know about what happened. For example, it might be possible to file your claim under an alias or using just your initials, so any public court records don’t directly state your full identity.
Call the Law Firm That Fights for Sexual Assault Survivors!
You deserve justice as a sexual assault survivor. Let Perry & Young fight for it in your name. Many of our attorneys have gained a nationwide reputation for handling difficult and sensitive sexual assault claims and lawsuits, including Attorney Ryan Hobbs, Attorney Kelly McIntosh, Attorney Larry Perry, and Attorney Les McFatter. However, please let our trauma-informed attorneys know if you would prefer to work with female attorneys and support staff if that would make you more comfortable during the legal process. We are here to stand with you no matter what.
It would be our honor to hold the sexual offender and any institution that harbored them accountable. Our Northwest Florida sexual assault injury attorneys are standing by to provide respectful and effective legal counsel.
For more information about our legal services, call (850) 215-7777 now.
