Abuse and Exploitation Claims
Leigh Day acts on behalf of those who have suffered abuse. Complete the short form to make a confidential enquiry today.
How can Leigh Day help?
Leigh Day has a team of solicitors who specialise in representing survivors of abuse. The team handles each case with confidentiality and sensitivity.
The specialist legal team is rated as one of the best in the UK, with a track record of success over three decades. They have supported clients who have suffered sexual, physical and emotional abuse, resulting in psychiatric damage and physical injury. This includes survivors of child abuse and vulnerable adults, such as older people or those living with disabilities.
Leigh Day often represents survivors who come forwards years after abuse took place, and those claiming on behalf of someone else – such as a parent for their child.
“No excuses” discipline in UK schools
Leigh Day is investigating reports of excessive punishments in schools across the UK.
What our clients say
Job well done. Really pleased how they helped me out. And happy with the result.
BP via Trustpilot
Get in touch with our specialist team
If your enquiry is about domestic violence or abuse by a partner in a domestic setting, Leigh Day will not be able to advise you. Other organisations who may be able to help include:
Abuse can take on many forms and happen in various settings, including professional and care environments.
Some areas where abuse may take place and involve breaches of trust can include:
- Hospitals and healthcare, where a medical professional may be an abuser.
- Sports, including children’s clubs and international events.
- Schools, including boarding schools, where survivors past and present can bring claims, including for safeguarding and restraint failures.
- Care homes, where children or vulnerable adults may have suffered abuse by staff.
- Children’s homes and foster care, where social services may be involved.
- Churches or religious settings, from leaders or people in a position of authority.
Even if your situation isn’t listed above, Leigh Day's abuse claims specialist can help you seek justice and secure compensation for trauma, injuries and other impacts on your livelihood.
Who can make an abuse claim?
Anyone who has suffered from physical, sexual or emotional abuse – whether it happened decades ago, recently, in the UK or abroad – may be able to bring a claim.
Leigh Day often works with parents claiming on behalf of their child, or those acting on behalf of someone who is no longer here, or unable to represent themselves. This could be if they have learning difficulties or cannot face making a claim themselves due to the emotional trauma the abuse caused.
Contact the firm's specialist team and they can assess your case, advising on whether you may be able to bring an abuse claim to try and secure compensation and closure for yourself or a loved one.
Types of abuse
Meet the team
Alison Millar
Partner
Alison Millar works in the human rights department at Leigh Day, where she is the head of abuse claims.
Dino Nocivelli
Partner
Dino is an experienced child sexual abuse claims lawyer. He is also a member of the Association of Child Abuse Lawyers and an ambassador for The Survivors Trust, Kyniska Advocacy, Seen & Heard, and Revival – Wiltshire RASAC.
Catriona Rubens
Senior associate solicitor
Catriona Rubens is a senior associate solicitor in the abuse team.
Shaimaa Al-Mukhtar
Associate solicitor
Shaimaa works with Dino Nocivelli on cases brought against both individuals who have abused positions of power and institutions that have failed to protect children suffering abuse.
Astrid Parrett
Paralegal
Astrid is a paralegal working in the abuse team in the human rights department.
Top FAQs about an abuse claim
Anyone who has suffered from physical, sexual or emotional abuse – whether it happened decades ago, recently, in the UK or abroad – may be able to bring a claim.
Leigh Day often works with parents claiming on behalf of their child, or those acting on behalf of someone who is no longer here, or unable to represent themselves. This could be if they have learning difficulties or cannot face making a claim themselves due to the emotional trauma the abuse caused.
Contact the firm's specialist team and they can assess your case, advising on whether you may be able to bring an abuse claim to try and secure compensation and closure for yourself or a loved one.
Yes, you can claim compensation for sexual abuse, whether it was recent or in the past. The nature of a claim for sexual abuse will depend on where it took place, when and the abuser’s relationship to the victim.
Compensation may be secured to provide some level of justice. While it can never take back the abuse, it can provide compensation for any physical and emotional injuries, rehab and therapy costs, financial losses and more related to the abuse.
Yes, you should generally bring legal action within three years of the abuse occurring, or three years from a child’s 18th birthday. This time limit doesn’t apply if you are a vulnerable adult who lacks capacity.
For abuse that involves a breach of your human rights, you should take legal action within one year.
For this reason, it’s a good idea to seek legal advice as soon as you feel comfortable. However, don’t panic if you’re not ready to yet. As abuse is such a sensitive matter, there are often exceptions to the time limits – as seen with all the successful non-recent abuse claims.
You can get specialist support from the National Association for People Abused in Childhood (NAPAC) when you’re ready. They can help and advise you. Then when you’re ready you can start a child abuse claim with Leigh Day.
The process is similar to claiming compensation for any type of abuse. Leigh Day's specialist abuse team will listen to your case with compassion and confidentiality, advise on whether you have a claim and next steps to take. Depending on this, there are three main ways you could secure compensation:
- Bringing a legal claim against your abuser in the Civil Court – suing your abuser or those responsible.
- Claiming via the Criminal Court if your abuser is convicted.
- Using the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority.
Similar to other abuse claims, the amount of compensation you could obtain will depend on the specifics of your case. Factors that may affect how much you may secure include the:
- Extent of your injuries
- Effect of emotional trauma
- Amount of time the abuse lasted
- Place where the abuse occurred
- Ongoing impact of the abuse
For these reasons we can’t provide an estimate of any child abuse compensation until reviewing your case.
Seeking legal advice about the abuse you suffered can be an essential step towards helping you right the wrong that happened to you. Abuse claims are a specialist area of law, and you should approach lawyers who are experts in bringing cases on behalf of survivors.
When you speak to a lawyer, you may be asked to provide details of:
- The kind of abuse you were subjected to – such as sexual, physical or emotional abuse.
- When and where the abuse you suffered happened.
- Whether you have spoken to anyone about the abuse in the past.
The lawyer might want to see any paperwork, documents or photographs that you have that are relevant to the abuse.
It’s common not to speak about the abuse you suffered, including for many years. Abuse involves a breach of trust, and you may find it difficult to trust someone enough to tell them what happened to you.
A specialist abuse lawyer will be experienced in helping clients who have difficulties talking about the abuse they suffered. Your lawyer will confidently and compassionately explain the information they need to provide you with legal advice. They’ll listen to your story in a patient and sensitive manner.
You may find it helpful to write down what you want to say before speaking to a lawyer or someone else about the abuse.
If you feel able to, it can be a good idea to report the abuse you suffered to the police. The police may already be aware of your abuser and/or other victims, and only the police can conduct a criminal investigation into what happened to you.
To report the abuse you suffered to the police, you can:
- Go into a police station
- Calling 101
- Report it on your local police force’s website.
If you prefer to speak to a male or female officer, explain this when you first contact the police. Depending on the police force, you might talk to an officer from a dedicated sexual offences investigation team, a criminal investigation department (CID), or a child protection team.
The police will ask you for some basic information and take a ‘first account’ from you. You can do this:
- Over the telephone
- In your home
- At your local police station.
After this, you may be asked to give a more detailed account to the police. This could be by providing a written statement or a video interview. You can ask the police for a copy of the statement you made.
The police should listen to you and take your report seriously. Not every report of abuse to the police will result in a criminal trial. If a case doesn’t proceed to a criminal court, the police should explain the reasons for this to you.
You may still be able to take a civil claim for the abuse you suffered, even if you have never reported it to the police.
In some circumstances, you can claim directly against the person who subjected you to abuse. This may depend on whether the abuser has enough financial assets to pay you compensation.
Your lawyer may advise you that it’s better to take your case against an institution connected to the person who abused you. This could be an organisation that failed to protect you.
Your case will be kept entirely confidential, and we won’t inform anyone about your claim without asking you first.
We are able to keep the legal proceedings anonymous to protect your identity if your case is issued at court. This means that you would be known in the court case as a set of letters, such as ‘XY’.
Your lawyer will discuss the options available to fund your abuse claim. It might be possible for you to obtain Legal Aid, or your lawyer may recommend a ‘no win no fee’ agreement. You may also be advised to take out a special insurance policy to protect you during your legal claim.
Discover more about paying for legal action.
It’s normal to feel anxious or frightened about speaking about your abuse in court, particularly if the person who abused you is still alive.
In most cases brought by Leigh Day, settlements are reached outside of court.
If your case does proceed to a trial or a hearing, your lawyer will ensure that you are fully prepared and supported to appear in court.
The process to bring a claim for any kind of abuse can take anywhere from around three to 18 months or longer. It depends on the details of the case, including how recent the abuse took place, who the defendant is and the nature of the abuse.
For example, historical abuse cases may take longer if the individual or institution being sued is no longer around.
Yes
There are numerous reasons why victims and survivors may want to change their legal representation and these include:
- Poor rapport with your lawyer
- Not having a dedicated or lead lawyer that you can answer your queries
- A lawyer who is continually unavailable
- Concerns about the advice you are being provided with
- Lack of frequent and proactive updates from your lawyer
- Your lawyer does not explain things in a clear and concise manner
- Loss of faith in your lawyer’s abilities
- Case is progressing slowly and without explanation
- Feeling pressured to settle your case for less than what you feel you are entitled to.
It is important if you have suffered sexual abuse as a child or as an adult that you choose a lawyer that specialises in abuse cases and only acts for victims and survivors of abuse.
A common concern by victims and survivors who want to move to a new lawyer is about the legal fees they have incurred with their old lawyer. The old lawyer can demand payment of these fees as per their no win no fee agreement.
Most law firms are reasonable and will agree to releasing their file subject to a “lien” over their costs because the alternate is retaining a client who is unhappy and has raised complaints. A “lien” means that the new lawyers promise that if/when the case is successful then they will look to the defendant to also pay the legal costs of the old lawyer.
The first step to take if you are looking to move to a new lawyer is to do your research and to speak to the potential new lawyer. They will be able to provide you with some initial advice as to whether they can take on your case and this will be on a no obligation basis.
If it is not possible to sort out the issues with your current lawyer then the next step would be for you to sign a form of authority requesting your file to be released to your new lawyer. This form would be drafted by your new lawyer and they would also look to sort out the funding position with your old lawyer as noted above and work on getting your file released to them.
You may find it difficult and emotional to speak about the abuse that you suffered. Your lawyer will always take the time to listen to you, but they are not a healthcare professional.
If you are struggling with your mental health it is important that you speak to your GP or other healthcare professional. However, for several reasons, appropriate mental health services may not be readily accessible to many people. If this is the case you can also contact any of the relevant organisations below, who may be able to provide you with the information or support which you require.
There are various charities and services you can speak to for additional support regarding abuse, such as:
- Male Survivors Partnership - 0808 800 5005
- Mind
- Rape Crisis - (female only) - 0808 802 9999
- SupportLine
- The National Association for People Abused in Childhood (NAPAC) - 0808 801 0331
- Women’s Aid
- Care Leavers’ Association - 0161 637 5040
- Childline - 0800 1111
- Islington Survivors Network
- MeTooSchool
- News Pathway - 01685 379 310
- One in Four
- Stop it Now! - 0808 1000 900
- We Are Survivors (male only) - 0808 500 2222
- Survivors Trust - 0808 801 0818
- Survivors UK (male only) - 0203 598 3898
Statement from families impacted by Nathan Bennett abuse at Bristol nursery
A group of families impacted by abuse at Partou King Street nursery in Bristol have issued a statement through their lawyers, after Nathan Bennett was found guilty of sexually abusing toddlers.
Bright Horizons nursery families put company on notice of legal action
A group of families affected by serious allegations of abuse by Vincent Chan at Bright Horizons Nursery, Finchley Road, Camden, have put the nursery provider company on notice of a civil legal claim.
Bright Horizons nursery worker admits abuse of young children
A former staff member at a Bright Horizons nursery has admitted the sexual abuse of children over a period of 19 months.
Survivors of abuse at London private boys’ school secure justice after decades of silence
Two men have settled claims against the Whitgift Foundation for childhood sexual abuse they suffered from teacher Paul Dodd at Whitgift School.
First legal settlement for alleged body shaming at Royal Ballet School
A former dancer has settled a legal claim against the Royal Ballet School for body shaming during her time there.
Woman secures damages from children’s home company for abuse endured as teenager
A woman has settled her case against Keys Care Limited for sexual, physical and emotional abuse she suffered from her support worker Andrew Geeson at a children’s home in south Lincolnshire.