On May 28, 2019, Governor Doug Ducey signed HB 2466 into law. The bill increases the amount of time a child sex abuse survivor can file a civil lawsuit against their abusers—since it often takes years for survivors to process and deal with the traumatizing experience.
Before the proposal of the bill, minors were prohibited from filing a lawsuit in civil court once they reach 20 years of age. Now, the statute of limitations is extended to age 30.
Additionally, all victims of child sexual assault—no matter what age—can file a civil suit until December 31, 2020. However, these older victims have a higher burden of proof in order to succeed in court and cannot receive damages from their assailants.
Although HB 2466 passed both the House and Senate on unanimous votes, the bill didn’t pass without a fight. Republican senators Heather Carter and Paul Boyer had promised to vote “no” on the state budget if lawmakers failed to vote for the bill, going against the rest of their colleagues in the caucus.
Due to the state budget holdup, both the Senate and the House had to work on Memorial Day. Once the Senate passed the measure that day, the House took it up for a vote right away and unanimously passed the bill.
If you or your child has been a victim of sexual abuse in Phoenix, contact Montoya, Lucero & Pastor, P.A. today at (602) 483-6869 and schedule a case review today.