What You Need
To Know.

A criminal case is brought by the government to punish the person who caused harm. A civil case is brought by you to hold the responsible party — the perpetrator, the institution, or both — accountable for your damages. You control a civil case. You do not control a criminal case. A civil case and a criminal case can proceed at the same time, or a civil case can proceed without any criminal case at all.

No. A civil case does not require a police report, a criminal investigation, or a criminal conviction. The legal standard in civil court is preponderance of the evidence — meaning it is more likely than not that what you say occurred. That is a lower standard than the "beyond a reasonable doubt" standard used in criminal court.

Under Colorado law (SB21-073), there is no statute of limitations for civil claims based on sexual misconduct where the cause of action accrued on or after January 1, 2022, or where the prior statute of limitations had not yet run as of January 1, 2022. If your cause of action accrued before January 1, 2022, and the prior limitation period had already expired before that date, different rules apply. Do not assume your time has run out without speaking with an attorney.

Yes. Institutional liability is a separate legal question from individual criminal liability. An institution may be held liable in a civil case if it ignored credible reports of misconduct, failed to screen employees, failed to properly monitor employees, failed to report known abuse to law enforcement, or failed to disclose prior misconduct when transferring or rehiring staff. The institution's conduct — what it knew, when it knew it, and what it did or did not do — is evaluated independently.

Colorado law allows recovery of economic damages — including medical expenses and lost wages — and non-economic damages, including pain and suffering and loss of quality of life. In some cases, the court may also award punitive damages. Punitive damages cannot be requested in the original complaint; they are added by the court where the facts support them. Note: for claims against government entities filed between January 1, 2022 and January 1, 2026, Colorado law caps damages at $424,000.

Not automatically. Whether identifying information becomes part of the public record depends on how the case proceeds and whether protective orders are requested and granted. This is a conversation to have directly with an attorney before deciding how to move forward.

Greer Law handles institutional sexual assault cases on a contingency fee basis. You do not pay attorney fees unless there is a recovery. The initial consultation is free and confidential.

A confidential consultation is the right first step. You are not required to have a complete account of events, a police report, or any prior legal action to reach out. Greer Law evaluates what institution was involved, what access the perpetrator had, what was known, and what was ignored. Those are the questions that matter in a civil case.

Civil cases involving institutional sexual assault are not built solely on witness testimony. Documentation, prior complaints, hiring records, supervision policies, incident reports, and the institution's own internal communications are all potential sources of evidence. The absence of a witness does not end the inquiry.