Adult Survivors Act Set to Expire This Week

New York’s groundbreaking Adult Survivors Act (ASA) is poised to expire, closing the door on the opportunity for survivors to have their stories heard and to seek justice, Richard Luscombe reports for The Guardian. When the act sunsets this Thursday, more than 2,500 actions will have been filed under the legislation. Of the 2,587 electronic filings in New York state courts under the ASA by the end of last week, more than half were prison-related claims against the state. Advocates believe that victories in high-profile cases gave confidence to other victims previously too frightened to speak out. The adult version that expires this week was also set for a fixed term period, and regular statute of limitation rules for sexual assault lawsuits will apply again from Friday.