Full Text of SB1868 101st General Assembly
SB1868 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
| | 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2019 and 2020 SB1868 Introduced 2/15/2019, by Sen. Terry Link SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: |
| 735 ILCS 5/13-202.2 | from Ch. 110, par. 13-202.2 |
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Amends the Limitations Article of the Code of Civil Procedure. Provides that if there is evidence that childhood sexual abuse was committed by a person who holds a position of trust, authority, or supervision over the minor victim, and that person fraudulently concealed a cause of action from the knowledge of the minor victim, the action may be commenced at any time within 5 years after the person entitled to bring the action discovers that he or she has such cause of action, and any repose or limitation period is tolled during that 5-year period. Effective immediately.
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| | A BILL FOR |
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| 1 | | AN ACT concerning civil law.
| 2 | | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
| 3 | | represented in the General Assembly:
| 4 | | Section 1. Findings. Credible reports from around the | 5 | | world, including this State, have indicated instances of repeat | 6 | | childhood sexual abuse have occurred at the hands of members of | 7 | | the Catholic Church. These reports have indicated efforts may | 8 | | have been taken to conceal the identities and conduct of the | 9 | | individuals responsible for the sexual abuse. The General | 10 | | Assembly finds that victims of such conduct should be afforded | 11 | | a remedy to the fullest extent available under the law. | 12 | | Section 5. The Code of Civil Procedure is amended by | 13 | | changing Section 13-202.2 as follows:
| 14 | | (735 ILCS 5/13-202.2) (from Ch. 110, par. 13-202.2)
| 15 | | Sec. 13-202.2. Childhood sexual abuse.
| 16 | | (a) In this Section:
| 17 | | "Childhood sexual abuse" means an act of sexual
abuse that | 18 | | occurs when the person abused is under 18 years of age.
| 19 | | "Sexual abuse" includes but is not limited to sexual | 20 | | conduct and sexual
penetration as defined in Section 11-0.1 of | 21 | | the Criminal Code of 2012.
| 22 | | (b) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, an action |
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| 1 | | for damages
for personal injury based on childhood sexual
abuse | 2 | | must be commenced within 20 years of the date the limitation | 3 | | period
begins to run under subsection (d) or within 20 years of
| 4 | | the date the person abused
discovers or through the use of | 5 | | reasonable diligence should discover both
(i) that
the act of | 6 | | childhood sexual abuse occurred and (ii) that the injury was
| 7 | | caused
by the childhood sexual abuse.
The fact that the person | 8 | | abused discovers or through the use of reasonable
diligence | 9 | | should discover that the act of childhood sexual abuse occurred | 10 | | is
not, by itself, sufficient to start the discovery period | 11 | | under this subsection
(b). Knowledge of the abuse does not | 12 | | constitute discovery of the injury
or the causal relationship | 13 | | between any later-discovered injury and the abuse.
| 14 | | (c) If the injury is caused by 2 or more acts of childhood | 15 | | sexual
abuse that are part of a continuing series of acts of | 16 | | childhood sexual
abuse by the same abuser, then the discovery | 17 | | period under subsection
(b) shall be computed from the date the | 18 | | person abused discovers or through
the use of reasonable | 19 | | diligence should discover both (i) that the last act
of
| 20 | | childhood sexual abuse in the continuing series occurred and | 21 | | (ii) that the
injury was caused by any act of childhood sexual | 22 | | abuse in the continuing
series.
The fact that the person abused | 23 | | discovers or through the use of reasonable
diligence should | 24 | | discover that the last act of childhood sexual abuse in the
| 25 | | continuing series occurred is not, by itself, sufficient to | 26 | | start the discovery
period under subsection (b). Knowledge of |
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| 1 | | the abuse does not constitute
discovery of the injury
or the | 2 | | causal relationship between any later-discovered injury and | 3 | | the abuse.
| 4 | | (d) The limitation periods under subsection (b) do not | 5 | | begin to run
before the person abused attains the age of 18 | 6 | | years; and, if at the time
the person abused attains the age of | 7 | | 18 years he or she is under other
legal disability, the | 8 | | limitation periods under subsection (b) do not begin
to run | 9 | | until the removal of the disability.
| 10 | | (d-1) The limitation periods in subsection (b) do not run | 11 | | during a time
period
when the person abused is subject to | 12 | | threats, intimidation,
manipulation, or fraud perpetrated by | 13 | | the abuser or by any person acting in the
interest of the | 14 | | abuser.
| 15 | | (e) This Section applies to actions pending on the | 16 | | effective date of
this amendatory Act of 1990 as well as to | 17 | | actions commenced on or after
that date. The changes made by | 18 | | this amendatory Act of 1993 shall apply only
to actions | 19 | | commenced on or after the effective date of this amendatory Act | 20 | | of
1993.
The changes made by this amendatory Act of the 93rd | 21 | | General Assembly apply to
actions pending on the effective date
| 22 | | of this amendatory Act of the 93rd General
Assembly as well as | 23 | | actions commenced on or after that date. The changes made by | 24 | | this amendatory Act of the 96th General Assembly apply to | 25 | | actions commenced on or after the effective date of this | 26 | | amendatory Act of the 96th General Assembly if the action would |
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| 1 | | not have been time barred under any statute of limitations or | 2 | | statute of repose prior to the effective date of this | 3 | | amendatory Act of the 96th General Assembly.
| 4 | | (f) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, an action | 5 | | for damages based on childhood sexual abuse may be commenced at | 6 | | any time; provided, however, that the changes made by this | 7 | | amendatory Act of the 98th General Assembly apply to actions | 8 | | commenced on or after the effective date of this amendatory Act | 9 | | of the 98th General Assembly if the action would not have been | 10 | | time barred under any statute of limitations or statute of | 11 | | repose prior to the effective date of this amendatory Act of | 12 | | the 98th General Assembly. | 13 | | (g) If there is evidence that the sexual abuse was | 14 | | committed by a person who holds a position of trust, authority, | 15 | | or supervision in relation to the minor victim, and that person | 16 | | fraudulently concealed a cause of action under this Section | 17 | | from the knowledge of the minor victim, the action may be | 18 | | commenced at any time within 5 years after the person entitled | 19 | | to bring the action discovers that he or she has such cause of | 20 | | action, and any repose or limitation period is tolled during | 21 | | that 5-year period. | 22 | | (Source: P.A. 97-1150, eff. 1-25-13; 98-276, eff. 1-1-14.)
| 23 | | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | 24 | | becoming law.
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