Democratic state Sen. Brad Hoylman is hopeful a measure that would make it easier for adult victims and survivors of sexual abuse to file lawsuits will gain a vote in the state Assembly in the legislative session next year.
"I think the holdup is around education and colleagues understanding there won't be false claims, that the courts won't be overburdened and that justice can be now achieved," he said in a Capital Tonight interview on Wednesday. "We should allow adult survivors of sexual abuse to open a window, go to court and have claims judged in a civil manner."
Hoylman is the sponsor of the Adult Survivors Act, as well as the Child Victims Act, a measure that has enabled people who are victims and survivors of abuse as children to file lawsuits through a look-back window that is set to close at the end of the week. More than 9,000 cases have been filed as part of the law, the most recent of which was against Prince Andrew, the Duke of York.
The efforts as part of the Child Victims Act give added impetus to secure the proposal for adults, Hoylman said.
"I really think it's imperative because there's just a difference of a few years between a child and an adult," he said. "We know the statute of limitations for adults who have been sexually abused is punitively short."