When a child is harmed by an adult who was trusted to care for them, or by an institution that failed to protect them, the family often feels powerless against an organization that closes ranks. A civil claim can change that. It can hold accountable not only the individual but a school, a youth program, a care facility, or another organization whose negligence allowed the abuse to continue, and it can seek the resources a child needs to heal.
Mirador Law represents survivors and their families across the East Bay with discretion and care. Led by former San Francisco public defenders Megan Burns and Emily Dahm, the firm brings more than 40 years of combined experience and close to a hundred jury trials, including two of California’s Top 50 plaintiff verdicts for 2024.
Holding institutions accountable
Many child abuse cases involve an organization that ignored warning signs, failed to screen or supervise an adult, or did not act on a report. California requires many professionals to report suspected abuse, and a failure in that system can be part of a civil claim. We investigate what the organization knew and when, and we build the case around that record.
Deadlines
California gives childhood abuse survivors extended time to bring a civil claim. For childhood sexual abuse, Code of Civil Procedure section 340.1 sets longer deadlines than the standard injury rule, and for other childhood injuries the deadline is generally paused while the child is a minor. Because these rules are specific, please ask us about the timeline that applies.
A look at how these cases unfold
The following hypothetical examples illustrate how these cases can unfold. They are not based on any specific client and are provided for educational purposes only. A family learns that an adult at a youth program harmed their child, and that the program had received complaints before. A civil claim can pursue both the individual and the program, and the discovery process can bring to light what the organization knew and chose to ignore.
Child abuse civil attorneys by location: Pleasanton | Oakland | Fremont & Newark