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H7200ACivil Procedure

Courts and Civil Procedure - Procedure Generally - Causes of Action

This bill extends the time limit for childhood sexual abuse victims to sue abusers and organizations that enabled them.

On the floor69 Yea4 Nay2 Not voting
Population
Affected
15
Email Legislator
Introduced Jan 21, 2026Committee House Judiciary

Plain-English Summary

This bill changes the time limits for victims of childhood sexual abuse to file civil lawsuits. It applies the same deadlines to both the actual abusers and the organizations or individuals who may have negligently supervised, hired, or failed to report the abusers. Victims can file lawsuits up to 35 years after the abuse occurred or 7 years after they discover the injury. It also revives previously expired claims, allowing them to be filed until June 30, 2028. Additionally, it caps the damages victims can receive from the state or local governments at $100,000.

For younger readers

This bill changes the rules for when a person who was hurt by an adult as a child can go to court to ask for money to help them. It gives them more time to ask for this help, even if the harm happened a long time ago. It also lets them ask for money from the places the adult worked for if those places didn't do a good job keeping kids safe. If the place they are asking money from is the government, there is a limit on how much money they can get.

Who & Where It Applies

Impacted groups
Childhood sexual abuse survivorsPrivate organizations and businessesState and local governmentsCivil litigation attorneysLiability insurance providers
Impacted communities
All

Constitutional & Fiscal Check

Moderate risk

There is a moderate risk regarding the revival of time-barred claims. Retroactively removing a statute of limitations defense can face Due Process challenges under the Fourteenth Amendment or state constitution, as defendants may argue they had a vested right in the expired time limit. However, many courts have upheld similar legislative windows for childhood sexual abuse claims.

Estimated cost
Amount unknown
Estimated revenue
None

Bill Analysis

Both viewpoints
For Progressives
  • Expands access to justice for victims by reviving previously time-barred claims, allowing survivors of childhood sexual abuse to seek restitution even decades later.
  • Holds institutions and organizations accountable for negligent supervision or failure to report, helping to dismantle systemic protection of abusers.
  • Standardizes the statute of limitations for both direct perpetrators and enabling parties, ensuring that powerful institutions cannot escape liability through legal loopholes.
  • Caps damages against the state and local governments at $100,000, which may severely undercompensate victims who suffered abuse in state-run facilities like foster care or public schools.
  • Exempts the state and local governments from paying prejudgment interest, reducing the financial accountability of public institutions that fail to protect vulnerable children.
  • Delays the effective date of the legislation until July 1, 2026, forcing victims with revived claims to wait years before they can formally seek justice.
For Conservatives
  • Limits government financial liability by strictly capping damages against the state and municipalities at $100,000, protecting taxpayer funds.
  • Exempts government entities from prejudgment interest penalties, further shielding the public treasury from excessive financial burdens in civil suits.
  • Strengthens the rule of law and traditional values by ensuring severe financial consequences and accountability for individuals who commit heinous crimes against children.
  • Revives previously expired legal claims, which undermines the traditional legal principle of statutes of limitations and creates unpredictable liabilities for private organizations.
  • Exposes private businesses, churches, and organizations to massive retroactive lawsuits for negligent supervision, potentially threatening their financial survival and corporate freedom.
  • Imposes a high 12% prejudgment interest rate on private defendants, heavily penalizing private organizations while exempting the government from the same standard.

Votes

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Full Bill Text

2 versions
Changes to existing Rhode Island law · 42 additions · 25 deletions

SECTION 1. Section 9-1-51 of the General Laws in Chapter 9-1 entitled "Causes of Action" is hereby amended to read as follows: 9-1-51. Limitation on actions based on sexual abuse or exploitation of a child. (a)(1) All claims or causes of action brought against a perpetrator defendant party by any person for recovery of damages for injury suffered as a result of sexual abuse, including alleging negligent supervision of a person that sexually abused a minor, or that the defendant's conduct caused or contributed to the childhood sexual abuse by another person to include, but not be limited to, wrongful conduct, negligence or default in supervision, hiring, employment, training, monitoring, or failure to report and/or the concealment of sexual abuse of a child shall be commenced within the later to expire of:

(i) Thirty-five (35) years of the act alleged to have caused the injury or condition; or

(ii) Seven (7) years from the time the victim discovered or reasonably should have discovered that the injury or condition was caused by the act. Provided, however, that the time limit or commencement of such an action under this section shall be tolled for a child until the child reaches eighteen (18) years of age. For the purposes of this section, “sexual abuse” shall have the same meaning as in subsection (e) of this section.

(2) All claims or causes A claim or cause of action brought against a non-perpetrator defendant by any person alleging negligent supervision of a person that sexually abused a minor, or that the non-perpetrator defendant’s conduct caused or contributed to the childhood sexual abuse by another person to include, but not be limited to, wrongful conduct, neglect or default in supervision, hiring, employment, training, monitoring, or failure to report and/or the concealment of sexual abuse of a child shall be commenced within the later to expire of:

(i) Thirty-five (35) years of the act or acts alleged to have caused an injury or condition to the minor; or

(ii) Seven (7) years from the time the victim discovered or reasonably should have discovered that the injury or condition was caused by the act. Provided, however, that the time limit or commencement of such an action under this section shall be tolled for a child until the child reaches eighteen (18) years of age. For purposes of this section “sexual abuse” shall have the same meaning as in subsection

(e) of this section.

(3) As to a perpetrator defendant, any claim or cause of action based on conduct of sexual abuse may be commenced within the time period enumerated in subsections (a)(1)(i) and (a)(1)(ii) regardless if the claim was time-barred under previous version of the general laws.

(4) Except as provided in subsection (a)(3) herein, any claim or cause of action based on conduct of sexual abuse or conduct that caused or contributed to sexual abuse, if the action is not otherwise time-barred under previous version of the general laws on the effective date of this section, may be commenced within the time period enumerated in subsections (a)(1) and (a)(2) of this section based on conduct of sexual abuse or conduct that caused or contributed to sexual abuse, including alleging negligent supervision of a person that sexually abused a minor or that the defendant's conduct caused or contributed to the childhood sexual abuse by another person to include, but not be limited to, wrongful conduct, negligence or default in supervision, hiring, employment, training, monitoring, or failure to report and/or the concealment of sexual abuse of a child regardless if the claims were time-barred under previous versions of the general laws on the effective date of this section, may be commenced within the time period enumerated in subsections (a)(1)(i) and (a)(1)(ii) of this section.

(3) Notwithstanding any other law, a cause of action for damages that involves sexual conduct or sexual contact with a child, including alleging negligent supervision of a person that sexually abused a minor, or that the defendant's conduct caused or contributed to the childhood sexual abuse by another person to include, but not be limited to, wrongful conduct, negligence or default in supervision, hiring, employment, training, monitoring, or failure to report and/or the concealment of sexual abuse of a child, and that would be time barred because of an applicable statute of limitations shall be revived and shall be commenced by no later than June 30, 2028.

(b) The victim need not establish which act in a series of continuing sexual abuse or exploitation incidents caused the injury complained of, but may compute the date of discovery from the date of the last act by the same perpetrator defendant which is part of a common scheme or plan of sexual abuse or exploitation.

(c) The knowledge of a custodial parent or guardian shall not be imputed to a person under the age of eighteen (18) years.

(d) For purposes of this section, “child” means a person under the age of eighteen (18) years.

(e) As used in this section, “sexual abuse” means any act committed by the defendant against a complainant who was less than eighteen (18) years of age at the time of the act and which act would have been a criminal violation of chapter 37 of title 11.

(f) All claims or causes of action made pursuant to this section against the State of Rhode Island or any political subdivision thereof shall be exempt from the application of prejudgment interest pursuant to § 9-21-10.

(g) All claims or causes of action made pursuant to this section against the State of Rhode Island or any political subdivision thereof shall be subject to the limitations of damages set forth in §§ 9-31-1, 9-31-2, or 9-31-3 and any damages recovered therein shall not exceed the sum of one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000).

(h) In all actions filed pursuant to § 9-1-51(a)(3), other than those actions filed against the State of Rhode Island or any political subdivision thereof, in which a verdict is rendered or a decision made for pecuniary damages, there shall be added by the clerk of the court to the amount of damages interest at the rate of twelve percent (12%) per annum thereon from the date of written notice of the claim by the claimant or his or her representative to the defendant or the defendant’s insurer or the filing of the action, whichever comes first.

SECTION 2. Chapter 9-1 of the General Laws entitled "Causes of Action" is hereby amended by adding thereto the following section: 9-1-55. Severability. If any provision of this chapter or the application thereof to any person or circumstances is held invalid, such invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications of this chapter, which can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to this end the provisions of this chapter are declared to be severable.

SECTION 3. This act shall take effect on July 1, 2026.