Delayed Disclosure Isn’t Unusual—So Why Is the Law Still Built Around Immediate Memory?
Is it fair for survivors of childhood sexual abuse to be denied justice simply because they cannot recall every detail of a traumatic, repressed memory? This is the devastating reality exposed in Wright v. State of New York (2025 NY Slip Op 01564), where the plaintiff, Chi Bartram Wright, came forward decades after his abuse only to have his claim dismissed—not because it lacked credibility, but because it lacked perfect recall.
Wright filed his lawsuit under New York’s Child Victims Act (CVA), a law passed to provide a second chance for adult survivors of child sexual abuse who were previously barred from bringing claims due to the expired Legal deadline to file the claim. Wright alleged that between 1986 and 1990—when he was between the ages of 12 and 15—he was repeatedly sexually abused at “The Egg,” a state-owned performing arts center in Albany. However, due to the effects of trauma and the passage of time, he was unable to identify the specific perpetrator, explain why he was present at the facility throughout those years, or provide detailed timelines or relationships to the abuser.
The court dismissed Wright’s case, citing these missing details as fatal to the claim. But this decision reveals a fundamental contradiction in how the legal system treats trauma survivors. While the CVA was created with the understanding that trauma often delays disclosure, the courts still require levels of specificity that are often impossible for survivors to meet—especially those whose memories were fragmented by psychological defense mechanisms like dissociation or repression.
This case underscores a deeply flawed expectation: that trauma survivors should retain courtroom-ready details decades after their abuse, even when science and lived experience tell us otherwise. The trauma that silenced Wright for so long was the very reason he could not provide the information the court demanded. And for that, his path to justice was blocked. His courage in coming forward was met not with compassion or understanding, but with a barrier that disregarded the very purpose of the law under which he sought protection.
Fundamentally, the Wright case highlights the hypocrisy in our legal system: despite the fact that the law may eventually allow survivors to speak, it still requires evidence that many no longer have because of the nature of trauma. A system that demands information that trauma and early memories may have buried can retraumatize survivors like Wright, who bravely come forward decades after experiencing sexual abuse. Ultimately, Wright v. State of New York exposes a painful truth: a law like the CVA may offer the right to sue, but that right is meaningless without a trauma-informed legal process that recognizes how abuse distorts memory. Until courts acknowledge that trauma often robs survivors of clarity, many like Wright will continue to be retraumatized by a system that claims to protect them—yet denies their truth because it doesn’t fit neatly into legal checkboxes.
When Trauma Meets the Law: A System Unfit for Survivors
The outcome in Wright v. State of New York reaffirms the urgent need for the work we do at Justice for Kids®, a division of Kelly Kronenberg. While legislative reforms like New York’s Child Victims Act (CVA) represent monumental progress, they are not enough on their own. This case lays bare a systemic failure: even when survivors are finally granted the right to bring forward claims, rigid rules and outdated proof expectations can still lock them out of the courtroom. Survivors who have already endured the lifelong effects of trauma should not be further burdened with proving their pain under standards that disregard the psychological realities of abuse.
To truly serve justice, we need more than just windows to file claims—we need trauma-informed legal systems. These systems must acknowledge the science behind delayed disclosure and adapt legal requirements accordingly. That includes revising how courts assess credibility, easing requirements around detailed recollection, and protecting survivors from being retraumatized by the process of seeking accountability.
A Legal System That Fails the People It Claims to Protect
A comprehensive study by Child USA powerfully supports this call to action. The research revealed that most survivors of childhood sexual abuse do not disclose their abuse until well into adulthood—often between the ages of 50 and 70. This is not an anomaly; it is a normal, documented psychological response to trauma. Survivors often carry deep-seated shame, confusion, fear of retaliation, or blocked memories that delay or prevent disclosure. Even more devastating is the finding that approximately 30% of survivors never disclose their abuse at all. These sobering statistics shatter the myth that “real” victims always come forward quickly—and they expose the cruelty of a system that demands immediate reporting to validate a survivor’s experience.
At Justice for Kids®, we see this every day. Survivors come to us seeking help, not only to navigate the legal system but to be believed. Their cases are too often dismissed—not for lack of truth, but for lack of details that trauma has hidden. That’s why our mission is not just legal; it’s transformative. We fight to reshape systems that deny access to justice, we advocate for policies that recognize the lived experiences of survivors, and we amplify the need for legal standards that evolve with trauma science. Every case like Wright is a call to keep pushing—because no survivor should be turned away simply to survive the only way they knew how.
Why This Matters to Justice for Kids®
At Justice for Kids®, we are committed to transforming the way the legal system approaches survivors of childhood sexual abuse. Every day, we see how survivors—many of whom were harmed by the very systems meant to protect them—are forced to confront outdated legal barriers that serve to silence rather than support. These barriers often include sealed records, limited access to critical evidence, and restrictive sexual abuse statutes of limitations that fail to account for how trauma affects memory and disclosure. Our role is to challenge these systemic failures.
As experienced childhood sexual abuse lawyers and New York child abuse lawyers, we fight not only in courtrooms, but also in legislatures and public discourse to demand trauma-informed reform. We advocate for survivors who are penalized for disclosing abuse “too late,” when in reality, decades-long delays in disclosure are not only common—they are expected, according to overwhelming psychological research. The legal system, however, often continues to treat delayed disclosures as suspicious or legally insufficient. That is why our work goes beyond litigation.
Why This Case Strengthens Our Commitment
We push to change the laws themselves—to ensure that legal standards reflect the lived experiences of survivors, not outdated assumptions about how they should behave. Our team works to open sealed records, extend or eliminate statutes of limitations, and expand survivors’ rights to be heard without traumatization. We strive to create a legal landscape where truth and healing are not disqualified by time. Through every case and campaign, Justice for Kids® remains committed to protecting children’s rights and holding institutions accountable. Because justice delayed should never mean justice denied—and no survivor should be punished for surviving.
What Stronger Laws Could Look Like for Abuse Survivors
To better protect survivors of childhood sexual abuse, our legal framework must evolve to reflect what we now understand about trauma, memory, and delayed disclosure. Far too often, current laws are written from the perspective of convenience rather than survivor-centered justice. At Justice for Kids®, we believe that meaningful legal reform starts by acknowledging how trauma works—and restructuring the system to accommodate, not punish, those realities.
First, states must create clear and accessible legal pathways for survivors to obtain sealed foster care and adoption records, particularly when those records may contain crucial evidence of institutional negligence, abuse, or systemic failure. These documents often represent the only existing record of a child’s experience in state care—and yet survivors are frequently blocked from accessing them due to outdated confidentiality laws. Legislation should mandate a presumption in favor of disclosure when a survivor is pursuing legal accountability, and courts should be required to conduct in-camera judicial reviews when privacy concerns are raised. This approach can balance confidentiality with the survivor’s right to evidence, ensuring privacy is not used as a shield to protect institutions.
Second, sexual abuse statutes of limitations must be expanded—or eliminated altogether. The current patchwork of laws across the United States continues to disadvantage survivors based on where they live. In progressive states like Vermont and Maine, survivors can file civil claims for childhood sexual abuse at any age, without limitation. These states recognize that trauma often delays a survivor’s ability to process, remember, or speak about their abuse. Other states should follow their lead and adopt or extend revival windows to allow older claims to be heard, especially when new evidence surfaces or a survivor only recently came to terms with their trauma.
Additionally, agencies entrusted with child welfare must be held to stricter legal standards of transparency, reporting, and oversight. When an institution fails to act on known or suspected abuse, or hides critical evidence, the law must provide swift consequences—not just for individuals, but for the systems that enable abuse through inaction or indifference.
These reforms aren’t theoretical—they’re already working in parts of the country. They serve as practical, survivor-centered models for what is possible nationwide. At Justice for Kids®, we support and help lead these changes. Our mission is rooted in the belief that access to justice must not depend on a survivor’s ability to recall every detail, nor on arbitrary timelines that ignore the lifelong impact of abuse. The law should serve survivors, not silence them.
Call to Action
If you or someone you love is a survivor of childhood sexual abuse—and you’re facing obstacles like sealed records, institutional silence, or uncertainty about your legal rights—Justice for Kids® is here to help. Our team of experienced childhood sexual abuse lawyers understands the unique challenges survivors face, especially when trauma and time have complicated their ability to come forward. You don’t have to navigate this process alone. Whether you are uncertain about how the sexual abuse statute of limitations affects your case, or you’re looking for a dedicated New York child abuse lawyer to take on the systems that failed you, we are ready to stand with you. We don’t just represent clients—we advocate for lasting change in laws and institutions so no survivor is left unheard or unprotected.
Call us today at 754-888-KIDS (5437) to speak directly with our compassionate and knowledgeable legal team. We will listen. We will believe you. And we will fight to make sure your voice matters—in court, in policy, and in the pursuit of real justice.
You’ve carried the truth long enough. Now let us help carry the fight.
Justin Grosz, Esq.
Lead Partner, Justice for Kids
754-888-KIDS (5437)
Special thanks to Maya Behar, Research and Content Intern for Justice for Kids®, whose comprehensive research, detailed analysis, and substantive input were essential to the development of this article.
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