By Carolin Guentert and Caroline Hatley
New York City has a law that allows survivors of sexual violence to file civil lawsuits against the individuals and institutions that harmed them. It’s called the Victims of Gender-Motivated Violence Protection Act, commonly referred to as the Gender-Motivated Violence Act (GMVA).
The GMVA was amended in 2022 to provide more protections to survivors of sexual violence—including a two-year window in which to file expired claims. This window is set to expire early next year. Survivors now have until February 28, 2025 to file their lawsuit, regardless of when the assault occurred.
What to Know About Survivors’ Rights under the GMVA
The FAQ below provides information on survivors’ legal rights under the GMVA, including how the law defines “gender-motivated violence,” the legal recovery available to survivors, and what to know about the statute of limitations for filing a civil lawsuit.
1. Who can file a civil lawsuit under the GMVA?
Any victim of a violent crime motivated by gender can sue their abuser under the Act.
The 2022 Amendment to the GMVA also authorized victims to sue institutions – like schools, hospitals, or employers – that enabled the abuse.
2. Does this law mean there has to be a criminal case?
No.
The GMVA allows survivors of gender-motivated violence to file civil lawsuits against the individuals and institutions that harmed them. A civil case is brought directly by a victim (the plaintiff) against the perpetrator (the defendant). Through a civil case, survivors may recover monetary damages.
Criminal cases, by contrast, are brought by the government on the survivor’s behalf.
The GMVA does not require that a victim has filed a criminal complaint or that the defendant has been charged or convicted.
3. What qualifies as “gender-motivated violence?”
The GMVA has been interpretated to apply to a wide range of gender-motivated acts. For example, a New York state court recognized in Breest v. Haggis that rape and sexual assault are inherently motivated by hostility based on the victim’s gender and therefore fall under the GMVA.
Subsequent cases have reinforced this broad interpretation. For example, a New York federal court recently held that forcible touching – in that case, groping – is also inherently motivated by gender-based hostility based on the same rationale as Breest.
Other types of gender-based violence, such as domestic violence, violence in the workplace, and human trafficking, may be covered by the statute. Even acts that are not sexual in nature – like assault and battery – may be actionable under the GMVA if they are committed due to the victim’s gender.
4. What recourse is available under the GMVA?
The GMVA allows plaintiffs to recover several types of monetary damages. Survivors can recover compensatory damages for expenses like hospital bills, therapy costs, and lost wages. They can also get damages for emotional distress endured as a result of the violence they experienced.
The GMVA also allows for injunctive or declaratory relief, which means that the court can instruct the defendant to act a certain way or prevent the defendant from taking certain actions.
Plaintiffs who succeed in their lawsuit under the GMVA may also recover the money they spent on attorneys’ fees.
5. How does the statute of limitations impact the ability to file a lawsuit?
The GMVA gives survivors of gender-motivated violence seven years from the incident to file a lawsuit. If a survivor was too young at the time of the incident to file a lawsuit, or if they were injured or disabled because of the assault and therefore could not file a lawsuit, they may file their lawsuit up to nine years after they become able to bring a lawsuit.
The New York City legislature understood that many survivors of gender-motivated violence stay silent for years due to shame, trauma, or fear of retaliation. That’s why the 2022 amendment provided a two-year “look-back window”: Until February 28, 2025, any victim of gender-motivated violence may bring a claim, no matter when the underlying crime occurred. This window is closing soon, so victims who experienced abuse many years ago should consult with a lawyer if they believe they have a claim under the GMVA.
- What kinds of cases have been brought under the GMVA?
Claims brought under the GMVA include:
- Rape and sexual assault within the context of a romantic relationship and subsequent marriage. Doe v. Gross, No. 23 CIV. 6325 (JPC), 2024 WL 3729007, at *1 (S.D.N.Y. Aug. 7, 2024)
- Forcible groping and other sexual harassment of an employee by an employer. Baldwin v. TMPL Lexington LLC, No. 23 CIV. 9899 (PAE), 2024 WL 3862150 (S.D.N.Y. Aug. 19, 2024).
- Rape and unwanted sexual advances by University professors against students. Cojocaru v. City Univ. of New York, No. 19 CIV. 5428 (AKH), 2020 WL 5768723 (S.D.N.Y. Sept. 28, 2020)
- Sexual abuse by a Catholic priest against a volunteer and parishioner, with claims brought against both the individual priest and the diocese that supervised him. Doe v. Leonelli, No. 22-CV-3732 (CM), 2022 WL 2003635, at *1 (S.D.N.Y. June 6, 2022)
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