Confidentiality in Sexual Abuse Claims: What California Law Protects

If you are wondering what stays private in a California sexual abuse claim, the short answer is: a great deal, though not everything. What you tell an attorney is protected by privilege. California bars most settlement terms that would silence the facts of abuse. Courts can also allow a survivor to file as Jane Doe or John Doe.

This article explains how confidentiality works in civil claims for childhood sexual abuse and adult sexual assault in California, including claims against schools, churches, youth organizations, healthcare providers and other institutions.

What Confidentiality Means in a California Sexual Abuse Civil Case

A civil claim (a lawsuit a survivor brings to seek compensation from the person who caused harm, or from an institution that failed to prevent it) has rules about who sees what, and when. Some information is protected from the start. Some becomes public only if a case is filed. Some can be shielded by court order.

A survivor can pursue a civil case without a police report, criminal charges or a conviction. California's adult sexual assault statute says no criminal prosecution is necessary, and if one was brought, it need not have ended in a conviction. See our page on civil vs. criminal cases.

Three layers of protection do most of the work:

• Attorney-client privilege. A legal right to refuse to disclose certain communications, and to stop others from disclosing them, even in court.
• Statutory limits on settlement confidentiality. California restricts the secrecy terms a defendant can put in a settlement.
• Court record privacy rules. These govern sealing records, filing under a pseudonym, and keeping a survivor's sexual history out of evidence.

Attorney-Client Privilege: What Your Attorney Cannot Disclose

California Evidence Code § 954 provides that "the client, whether or not a party, has a privilege to refuse to disclose, and to prevent another from disclosing, a confidential communication between client and lawyer." The privilege is subject to exceptions discussed later in this piece.

The privilege attaches to an initial consultation. A person who consults an attorney for legal advice is treated as a client for privilege purposes, even if they never hire that attorney.

What it does not cover:

• The underlying facts themselves. The privilege protects the conversation, not the events. If a case is filed, the facts can become part of the case.
• Conversations with outsiders present. A communication made in front of someone not part of the legal team may not be treated as confidential.

The privilege belongs to the client, and only the client can waive it.

California's Limits on Settlement Confidentiality in Sexual Abuse Cases

An NDA (non-disclosure agreement) is a contract term in which one side promises not to talk about certain information. The full text of both statutes below is available on leginfo.legislature.ca.gov.

Code of Civil Procedure § 1002 applies to civil actions based on an act that may be prosecuted as a felony sex offense, childhood sexual assault, sexual exploitation of a minor, or sexual assault of an elder or dependent adult. In those cases, a settlement provision "that prevents the disclosure of factual information related to the action is prohibited." A court cannot enter an order that does the same thing. Any such provision in an agreement entered into on or after January 1, 2017 is "void as a matter of law and against public policy." An attorney demanding such a provision as a condition of settlement may face professional discipline.

Section 1002 does permit an agreement that keeps private the survivor's medical information, personal identifying information, and information revealing the nature of the relationship between the survivor and the defendant. The statute states this does not limit a survivor's own right to disclose that information.

Code of Civil Procedure § 1001 covers related claims, including sexual assault not governed by § 1002, sexual harassment, and certain workplace and housing harassment or discrimination claims. It likewise bars settlement terms that restrict disclosure of the facts, voiding those entered into on or after January 1, 2019. Two exceptions matter:

• At the claimant's request, a settlement may shield the claimant's identity and facts that could lead to it. This is not available when a government agency or public official is a party to the settlement.
• The settlement amount may be kept confidential.

Court Records and Public Access: What Gets Filed and What Stays Private

California starts from a presumption of public access to court records. Civil filings are generally open unless a law or court order says otherwise.

California Rules of Court, rules 2.550 and 2.551, published on courts.ca.gov, set out how a party asks a court to seal records. A record is generally sealed only by court order, after a motion, and only when the court finds that a privacy interest overrides the public's right of access and that sealing is narrowly tailored. Medical records, therapy records and material touching on sexual history are most often sought to be sealed.

Survivors can also ask to proceed under a pseudonym such as Jane Doe or John Doe. The request is typically made by motion, and the court decides. The defendant usually still learns the plaintiff's identity, but the public record does not carry the name.

Evidence Code § 1106 adds a protection at trial. In a civil action alleging sexual assault, sexual battery or sexual harassment, a defendant generally cannot use opinion evidence, reputation evidence or specific instances of the plaintiff's sexual conduct to prove consent, to prove the plaintiff was not harmed, or to attack the plaintiff's credibility on those points. The rule has a limited exception for sexual conduct with the alleged perpetrator, but where the case involves a minor and an adult, that conduct cannot be used to prove consent or absence of injury.

Mandatory Reporting and Its Limits: When Confidentiality Has Exceptions

California Penal Code § 11164 begins the Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting Act (CANRA), whose stated purpose is "to protect children from abuse and neglect." CANRA requires certain professionals to report suspected child abuse, including teachers, physicians, therapists and, in some circumstances, clergy. Attorneys are not generally among them.

Business and Professions Code § 6068(e) makes it an attorney's duty "to maintain inviolate the confidence, and at every peril to himself or herself to preserve the secrets, of his or her client." The one exception is permissive: an attorney "may, but is not required to," reveal confidential information to the extent reasonably necessary to prevent a criminal act likely to result in death or substantial bodily harm. It does not concern past abuse a client describes.

An adult survivor consulting a civil attorney about past abuse does not, through that conversation alone, trigger mandatory reporting.

Two other limits exist:

• The crime-fraud exception. The privilege does not protect communications made to help commit a future crime or fraud.
• Court-ordered disclosure. Once a case is filed, the other side may request documents through discovery or a subpoena. A protective order, limiting who may see sensitive material and how it may be used, is commonly sought in sexual abuse cases.

The Statute of Limitations and Confidentiality: How Timing Affects Privacy Choices

A statute of limitations is the deadline for filing a civil claim.

For childhood sexual abuse occurring on or after January 1, 2024, California has no time limit for a civil claim. For childhood abuse that occurred on or before December 31, 2023, the deadline is generally the later of the survivor's 40th birthday or five years from discovering that an injury was caused by the abuse. California also opened a three-year revival window under AB 218 (2019) for older childhood claims; that window closed on December 31, 2022. See our overview of childhood sexual abuse claims.

For sexual assault occurring on or after a survivor's 18th birthday, Code of Civil Procedure § 340.16 sets the deadline as the later of 10 years from the last act of assault, or three years from when the survivor discovers or reasonably should have discovered that an injury resulted from it. Section 340.16(b)(3) also revives otherwise time-barred adult assault claims based on conduct on or after January 1, 2009, which may be commenced until December 31, 2026. It does not revive a claim already litigated to finality, or one settled in a written agreement, before January 1, 2023. See our page on adult sexual assault claims.

Where a government body may be involved, additional rules can apply.

Consultation is protected by privilege. Filing a lawsuit creates a public record, unless the court grants a pseudonym or sealing order, so privacy requests are usually built into how the case is filed.

What Survivors in California Can Expect When They First Speak with an Attorney

A first consultation is protected by attorney-client privilege from the moment it begins. No police report, records or documentation are needed to ask a question.

An attorney typically needs only general information: the broad nature of the harm, an approximate timeframe, and who was involved. A survivor can share as little as feels right and can stop at any point.

Justice for Survivors focuses on civil claims in California. Matters involving active criminal proceedings, out-of-state defendants or federal jurisdiction may call for different counsel. A walkthrough of a California sexual abuse lawsuit is also available.

If You Have Questions, Privately

Depending on the facts, a survivor of sexual abuse or sexual assault in California may have the right to pursue a civil claim, against the person responsible and, in some cases, against an institution that failed to protect them. Through that claim, the law allows a survivor to seek compensation for emotional harm, therapy and medical costs, lost income and other damages, and the justice that a civil case may provide. Because California has extended and revived filing deadlines, options may exist even when the abuse happened many years ago.

A confidential case review covers which deadline may apply, whether an institution may be part of the claim, and what privacy protections, such as a Jane Doe filing or sealing, could be requested. It is free, privileged and carries no obligation. Nothing needs to be organized beforehand, and no one has to describe what happened in order to ask. This article is not asking anyone to decide anything, and it is not a substitute for a private conversation with an attorney.

To ask a question privately, by whichever channel feels safest, call Justice for Survivors at (866) 694-1630 for a confidential case review.