Oklahoma Institutional Sexual Abuse Lawyers

Holding schools, churches, youth organizations, daycares and care facilities accountable when they failed to protect the people in their care.

When the people in charge looked away

An institution can be held responsible for sexual abuse when it failed to take reasonable steps to keep people in its care safe. That is true even if the institution never wanted the abuse to happen. Schools, churches, youth groups, daycares, nursing homes and other care facilities decide who works with children and vulnerable adults, how those people are watched, and what happens when someone raises a concern.

These claims are part of our work for survivors of sexual abuse and assault. Many of them start with abuse that happened in childhood, sometimes years ago. Others involve adults abused in a hospital, a group home or an assisted living community.

Laurie Koller spent a decade in corporate defense before turning her practice toward people harmed by powerful systems. She knows how institutions protect themselves.

Large organizations have lawyers. You deserve someone in your corner too.

Talk to us

Free, confidential consultation

Consultations are free and confidential. You do not have to name anyone until you are ready.

Cases we handle

Institutions that failed to protect

Schools

Public and private schools, including teachers, coaches and staff on school trips.

Churches and religious groups

Clergy, youth ministers, volunteers and the bodies that oversee them.

Youth organizations

Sports clubs, camps, scouting and after-school programs.

Daycares

Licensed and home daycares that failed to screen or supervise staff.

Care facilities

Group homes, nursing homes and assisted living communities.

Medical and therapy offices

Clinics and practices that ignored complaints about a provider.

How an institution becomes responsible

An institution is usually responsible because of its own choices, not only because an employee or volunteer did something terrible. The law looks at what the organization knew, what it should have known, and what it did about it. Three ideas come up again and again.

Careless hiring

An organization must take reasonable care in who it lets near children or vulnerable adults. Skipping background checks, ignoring gaps in a work history or failing to call references can all matter, especially when a simple check would have shown a problem.

Careless supervision

Rules about adults being alone with children exist for a reason. When an institution lets one adult take a child off alone, ignores closed-door meetings or has no one watching overnight events, that may be a failure to supervise.

Keeping a known danger in place

Some of the hardest cases involve an organization that heard complaints and kept the person anyway, or quietly moved them to another school, parish or program. Choosing to keep someone after warning signs is a failure the law takes seriously.

The evidence these cases are built on

Institutions keep records, and those records often tell the story. Personnel files, prior complaints, incident reports, board minutes, emails and policy manuals can show what leaders knew and when they knew it.

Much of this is held by the institution, not by you. In a civil case, discovery rules require the organization to hand over relevant records. That is one reason it can help to talk with a lawyer early, before files are lost or people move away. Call (918) 221-3861 to talk through what happened, at no cost.

Oklahoma's reporting duty and why it matters

Oklahoma law requires every adult who suspects child abuse to report it to the state, and no employer may stop a worker from making that report. When a principal, pastor, coach or director heard about abuse and kept it inside the organization, that failure may be central to a civil claim.

If you need support right now, whether or not you ever bring a case, RAINN, the national sexual assault support organization offers free, confidential help.

Taking on a large organization

Going up against a school district, a church or a national youth group can feel impossible. You do not have to face them alone, and you do not have to do the work of proving what they knew. That is our job.

Deadlines apply to these claims, and they can depend on your age, on who the claim is against and on when you came to understand the harm. Some claims against public bodies, such as public schools, may also need early written notice. Please talk with a lawyer about your deadline. When you are ready, reach out through our contact page or call (918) 221-3861.

Large organizations have lawyers. You deserve someone in your corner too.

How we work

Steady, private and on your side

You set the pace

You choose what to share and when. We will not push you to relive details before you are ready.

We do the digging

We look for the records, prior complaints and witnesses that show what the institution knew.

We guard your privacy

Filing under initials or a pseudonym may be possible, and we will talk with you about whether it fits.

Compensation

What a civil case can recover

Money does not undo what happened. It can pay for the care you need and make an institution answer for its choices. Depending on the case, that may include:

Client reviews

What our clients say

"Laurie is a true advocate for her clients. Her passion and dedication to helping victims is unparalleled. Thank you Laurie for being a fearless leader in creating change."

Lexlee O.

This team is capable and leaves no stone unturned. The best decision I made was hiring this team for my case.

Mary W.

Knowledgeable, honest, experienced, compassionate, determined. Laurie is the first attorney I'll call for legal advice and guidance. Without question, I'm all in.

Cari B.

Common questions

Questions about institutional abuse

Can I sue the school or church and not only the abuser?

Often, yes. An institution can be responsible for its own failures, such as careless hiring, poor supervision or keeping someone after complaints. The person who committed the abuse can also be named. Many cases include both, because the institution is the one that could have stopped it. We look at both from the start.

The abuser has died or cannot be found. Is there still a case?

There may be. A claim against an institution is about what the organization knew and did, so it does not always depend on the abuser being alive or reachable. Records, former staff and other families can still show how the organization handled warning signs. We can look at what records exist.

Will the organization know I contacted a lawyer?

No, not from a consultation. What you tell us stays confidential. The institution would learn about a claim only if you decide to move forward, and we would talk with you first about timing and about steps that may protect your privacy. You stay in control of that decision the whole way.

What if the institution says it did not know?

That is a common response, and it is a question of evidence. Discovery can bring out complaints, emails and reports that show what leaders knew or should have known. An organization can also be responsible for failing to put basic safety rules in place. Missing policies and ignored training rules can tell their own story.

You do not have to have all the answers

Call us. We will start by listening.

Tell us how we can help

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