How the law works in child abuse compensation claims and what it can do for you

Child abuse compensation claims through the courts

The law can award you money (damages) for your injuries, both physical and psychological, as well as for financial losses such as lost earnings, medical treatment and therapy, travel expenses, cost of care from a friend/ relative or a professional carer.

The civil law cannot punish the abuser. This is the job of the criminal law. If child abuse compensation is awarded, it is often paid by insurance companies.

Briefly, in order to successfully claim child abuse compensation we have to prove that the abuse occurred and this has led to your injuries or your psychiatric condition. This may involve interviewing witnesses and examining a large number of documents (such as social services files).

Child abuse compensation claims are often defended and the defendant may often try and restrict access to relevant evidence that we need. This is why these cases can take a year or two (and sometimes longer) to conclude.

There are time limits for bringing claims and the defendant will often try and persuade the court that child abuse compensation cases are brought "out of time" and should not proceed. We have a lot of experience in successfully arguing against this but all cases are different and you should obtain specialist legal advice at the outset. We are happy to provide free claims assessments.

If the police have not investigated the abuse, it is a matter for you whether or not you tell them now. Our specialist child abuse compensation solicitors can discuss this with you but there are some advantages:

  • If the abuser is convicted of a criminal offence, it is easier to obtain compensation as the abuse will have been "proved" already.
  • The police have greater powers than we do to obtain evidence, which we can then use in your claim for compensation once the criminal proceedings are over.

Child abuse compensation claims and the CICA

  • CICA stands for the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority. It is a government scheme which processes applications for compensation for victims of violent and sexual crimes. We can guide you through the bureaucratic process of claiming child abuse compensation under the scheme including applying for reviews and appealing decisions of the case workers.

 Normally for a CICA claim to succeed, an application must:

  • Be made within 2 years of the assault and
  • Have been reported to the police or other authority and the applicant must have co-operated with any prosecution which arose as a result.

These rules however are difficult to apply in cases involving historic allegations of childhood abuse which come to light much later. We have had success in getting round the usual rules to obtain child abuse compensation for our clients.

In appropriate cases you can apply for child abuse compensation through both the courts and the CICA. The compensation from the CICA is usually much less than you would get in a civil claim for damages but is usually easier to obtain and quicker to come through. If later you are successful in a civil claim, the money from the CICA must usually be repaid.

If you think you may have a claim for child abuse compensation, please get in touch for free initial advice from sensitive professionals.