Sunnyvale survivors of sexual abuse or assault may bring a civil lawsuit for money damages against the person who caused the harm and, often, against an institution that failed to prevent it. These cases are filed in Santa Clara County Superior Court in San Jose, and California's deadlines depend on when the abuse happened and the survivor's age.
A Sunnyvale sexual abuse lawyer helps a survivor bring a civil lawsuit for money damages against the person who caused the harm and, often, against an institution that failed to prevent it. Sunnyvale cases are filed in Santa Clara County Superior Court in San Jose, and California's deadlines depend on when the abuse happened and the survivor's age at the time.
Many survivors do not connect what happened to them with a legal claim until much later, and California law was written with that in mind.
What a Civil Sexual Abuse Claim Involves in California
A criminal case is brought by the government, through a prosecutor, to punish the person who committed a crime. A civil case is brought by the survivor, who decides whether to file, and it seeks compensation for the harm done. The differences are set out in more detail in our guide to civil vs. criminal sexual abuse cases.
California civil law allows a survivor to sue the individual who caused the harm. In many cases it also allows a claim against an institution, such as a school, church, youth program, healthcare provider or foster care agency, whose failures made the abuse possible. The civil case can go forward whether or not criminal charges were ever filed, and whether or not a prosecution ended in a conviction.
California Laws That Protect Sexual Abuse Survivors
A "statute of limitations" is the deadline for filing a lawsuit. In California, the deadline for a sexual abuse claim turns on two facts: whether the survivor was a child or an adult, and when the abuse happened.
Abuse that happened in childhood. For childhood sexual abuse that occurred on or after January 1, 2024, California has removed the time limit for filing a civil claim. For childhood abuse that occurred on or before December 31, 2023, the earlier rule still applies: a survivor generally has until age 40, or five years from discovering that an injury was caused by the abuse, whichever is later.
A 2019 law, AB 218, created a three-year window that let survivors file childhood abuse claims that had already expired. That window closed on December 31, 2022, and it is not open now. The 2024 change did not revive any expired claim; it applies only going forward.
Assault that happened in adulthood. Under Code of Civil Procedure § 340.16, an adult survivor of sexual assault generally has the later of 10 years from the last act, or three years from when the survivor discovered or reasonably should have discovered that an injury resulted from it. Section 340.16(b)(3) also revives adult assault claims based on conduct on or after January 1, 2009 that had expired only because time ran out. Those claims may be filed until December 31, 2026. The only exceptions are a claim already litigated to finality, or settled in a written agreement, before January 1, 2023.
The claim against the person who caused the harm. Civil Code § 1708.5 creates a civil claim for "sexual battery," meaning intentional, sexually offensive contact. It allows a survivor to seek general damages (for emotional harm and suffering), special damages (such as therapy costs and lost income) and punitive damages, which are meant to punish especially wrongful conduct.
The claim against an institution. An organization can be responsible under theories such as negligent hiring, negligent supervision and negligent retention: whether it knew, or should have known, of a risk and failed to take reasonable steps to protect the people in its care.
Where the institution is a public body, such as a public school district, different procedural rules apply to a local public entity and to the State. For childhood abuse claims against a local public entity, California no longer requires the usual advance government claim before a lawsuit is filed. Official court information is available at courts.ca.gov.
Where Sexual Abuse Cases Are Filed in Sunnyvale and Santa Clara County
Sunnyvale sits within the jurisdiction of the Santa Clara County Superior Court for civil matters. The primary civil filing location is the Downtown Superior Courthouse, 191 N. First Street, San Jose, CA 95113. Current courthouse details can be confirmed through the state's Find My Court tool.
A case connected to an organization in San Jose, Santa Clara, Mountain View, Cupertino or Milpitas may also be filed in Santa Clara County Superior Court. Our San Jose civil claims page covers the same courthouse, and readers just across the county line may find the Fremont civil claims page relevant.
In Sunnyvale, police response inside city limits is handled by Sunnyvale Public Safety, and criminal prosecution by the Santa Clara County District Attorney's office. Neither is part of a civil claim, and a civil case does not require a police report to exist.