Who Could be Liable for Sexual Assault in a Civil Case?
Sexual assault is the type of crime that offers more than one way to punish and deter an aggressor. The victim of a sexual assault has options when it comes to punishing their attacker and taking steps to prevent the attacker from hurting anyone else in the future. It is important for a sexual assault victim to hire an experienced and compassionate lawyer who understands how to utilize the legal system to the victim’s advantage.
The Criminal Nature Of Sexual Assault
Sexual assault is one of those rare crimes that can be considered a criminal event as well as a civil one. The victim has the option of not only filing criminal charges against their attacker, but the victim can also choose to sue their attacker in civil court as well. The civil courts in each state do not give out extra jail time for sexual assault crimes, but they can financially punish the attacker in such a way as to prevent future attacks.
Suing In Civil Court
When you have an experienced personal injury attorney on your side, you can sue your sexual assault attacker in State Supreme Court. Someone who commits sexual assault opens themselves up to criminal charges and a civil action. It would be the actual attacker, and possibly the employer, who would be liable in civil court for any type of judgment the court passes. The victim will want to see the largest possible financial judgment against their attacker not to fill the victim’s bank account, but to stop the attacker.
Are The Civil Lawsuit And Criminal Charges Connected At All?
In some cases, an attacker is able to avoid criminal charges because the prosecution could not get the charges to stand up in court. The fact that an attacker was not convicted in a criminal court does not in any way affect the civil lawsuit. Whether the attacker is found guilty or not guilty in criminal court, the civil lawsuit can proceed as planned and can have very different results than the criminal case. There are different standards of proof in each type of case.
If you are the victim of a sexual assault, then we encourage you to give our firm a call. Our experienced and compassionate sexual harassment attorneys will know exactly how to transition your case from a criminal charge to a civil lawsuit. We will work with you to make sure that you get the level of justice you feel is necessary for the crimes that were committed.