Foster Care Sexual Abuse Lawyer for Ohio Survivors and Families
A child in foster care is placed there by adults whose job is to keep that child safe. When a foster home, group home, or agency fails, Ohio law lets survivors hold them accountable in a civil case, including adults who were abused in care years ago. Andy Goldwasser represents survivors across Ohio.
Everything you share is confidential, and the consultation is free.
Top 50 Cleveland and Top 100 Ohio Super Lawyer since 2016. National Trial Lawyers Top 100 Civil Plaintiff.
What Counts as Sexual Abuse in Foster Care
Foster care sexual abuse is any sexual abuse of a child while the child is in the custody or care of a children services agency. That includes abuse in a licensed foster home, a relative's home approved as a placement, a group home, or a residential facility. It also includes abuse by agency staff, by adults who live in or visit the home, and by other children in the placement.
Ohio law defines childhood sexual abuse by the child's age at the time: under 18, or under 21 for a child with a developmental disability or physical impairment. The abuse does not have to have led to a criminal conviction for a survivor to bring a civil claim.
A civil claim is separate from any criminal case. Prosecutors decide whether to charge the person who committed the abuse. A civil claim belongs to the survivor, and it can reach the agencies and adults who were responsible for the child's safety and failed to protect them. For abuse outside foster care, see our page on child sexual abuse cases in Ohio.
A child in foster care may have no parent nearby to notice the signs, and no one they trust enough to tell. Many survivors first speak about the abuse as adults, which is why Ohio's filing deadlines and the agency records from those years matter so much.
Situations Foster Care Abuse Claims Cover
Abuse in foster care happens in many settings, and the person who committed it is not always the foster parent. Each of the situations below can support a civil claim.
Abuse by a Foster Parent
A licensed foster parent who sexually abused a child placed in their home, whether the abuse lasted days or years.
Abuse by Another Adult in the Home
A partner, adult child, relative, or regular visitor of the foster family who had access to the child without proper screening.
Abuse by Another Child in the Placement
An older foster child or a foster family's own child who abused a younger child the adults were supposed to supervise.
Abuse in a Group Home or Residential Facility
Abuse by staff members or other residents in a congregate setting where the operator was responsible for supervision.
Abuse in a Relative or Kinship Placement
Abuse in a relative's home that an agency approved as a placement and was responsible for checking and monitoring.
Abuse by Caseworkers or Agency Staff
Abuse by a caseworker, transport driver, or other agency employee who used their position to gain access to a child.
Abuse in a Pre-Adoptive Home
Abuse after a child was placed with a family that planned to adopt, while the agency still held custody.
Trafficking or Exploitation of Youth in Care
A child in care who was sexually exploited or trafficked, including after running away from a placement.
Who Can Be Held Responsible for Abuse in Foster Care
When a child is in foster care, a chain of adults and organizations share responsibility for that child's safety: the agency that holds custody, the agency that licensed and supervises the home, the caregivers, and the professionals who see the child. A civil case looks at each link in that chain.
Failure to protect can take many forms. An agency approves a home without checking everyone who lives there. A caseworker skips visits or sees warning signs and does nothing. A group home leaves children unsupervised at night. A report of abuse is made and never investigated, so the same adult harms another child. An agency places a younger child with an older child it knew had abused before.
Ohio gives survivors several legal claims. Against the person who committed the abuse, a survivor can bring a claim for assault and battery, or a claim under Ohio Revised Code 2307.60, which lets anyone injured by a criminal act recover damages in a civil action. Against agencies, operators, and caregivers, the main claims are negligence and negligent hiring and supervision. When abuse involved a school, a student may also have a Title IX claim.
The Person Who Committed the Abuse
The foster parent, staff member, or other individual who abused the child can be sued directly, with or without a criminal conviction.
Group Home and Facility Operators
Operators are responsible for hiring, training, staffing, and supervising, and for protecting residents from staff and from each other.
County Children Services Agencies
The county agency that held custody and chose the placement. Ohio's immunity rules for public bodies apply, with exceptions, so these claims need early legal review.
Foster Parents and Household Adults
Foster parents who abused a child, or who failed to protect a child from someone else in the home they knew or should have known was dangerous.
State Agencies
When the state had custody or responsibility, the Ohio Supreme Court has held that the 12-year childhood abuse deadline applies to claims against the state.
Private Foster Care Agencies
Private agencies that recruit, train, and supervise foster homes can be responsible when they approve an unsafe home or ignore warning signs.
Adults Who Failed to Report
Ohio requires many people who work with children to report suspected abuse immediately. A person who fails to report can be liable for the harm that followed.
What to Do If a Child Was Abused in Foster Care
Whether you are an adult who was abused in care, or a relative or foster parent who has learned a child is being harmed now, these steps protect the child and keep your options open. Every decision about reporting and legal action is yours.
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Step 1: Make Sure the Child Is Safe Now
If a child is in danger right now, call 911. If the child is still in foster care and the abuse is ongoing or recent, report it to the police and to the county children services agency, and ask what will be done to keep the child safe. Write down who you spoke to, when, and any report number they give you. Our victim resources page lists Ohio hotlines and support organizations.
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Step 2: Write Down Your Placement History
Foster care cases often turn on who was responsible for the child at the time. List every placement you remember: each home, group home, or facility, the approximate dates, the names of foster parents and caseworkers, and which agency handled the placement. Rough dates are fine. Your attorney can fill in the gaps from agency records.
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Step 3: Keep Any Records and Messages
Save anything connected to the abuse or the placement: letters, texts, emails, photos, school records, court papers from a custody or dependency case, and any written report you made. Note anyone you told at the time, whether a teacher, caseworker, or foster parent, and what they did. Proof that someone knew and did nothing is often central to a claim against an agency.
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Step 4: Get Support From People Trained to Help
Talking about abuse in foster care can bring back memories you have kept away for years. Organizations such as the Cleveland Rape Crisis Center support survivors of sexual violence, whether or not you take legal action. Counseling records can also show how the abuse has affected your life.
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Step 5: Talk to a Civil Attorney Before Deadlines Close In
Ohio's deadlines for childhood sexual abuse claims are long, but claims against county agencies can run on a shorter clock. A free, confidential consultation tells you which deadlines apply to you, who may be responsible, and whether a claim is possible.
What a Foster Care Abuse Claim Can Recover
A civil claim seeks compensation for the harm abuse in foster care caused, both what a survivor has already lost and what lies ahead. What a case is worth depends on its facts, and some limits apply to claims against public agencies. Our page on sexual abuse lawsuit damages in Ohio explains each category in more detail.
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Counseling and Care Costs
The cost of therapy, counseling, and other care a survivor has needed since the abuse, and the care they will need in the years ahead.
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Lost Income and Earning Capacity
Wages lost because of the abuse's effects, and the income a survivor may lose in the future if the harm affects their education or ability to work.
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Pain and Suffering
Compensation for emotional distress, anxiety, and loss of enjoyment of life. In claims against county agencies, Ohio law caps this type of damages.
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Punitive Damages
Damages meant to punish and deter, available in some cases against an individual or private organization that showed conscious disregard for a child's safety. Not available against county agencies.
What Happens After You Contact Our Office
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A Free, Confidential Conversation
You can call or reach out through the website. The first conversation costs nothing, stays confidential, and does not commit you to anything. You share only what you are ready to share.
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Andy Goldwasser Reviews Your Case
Andy personally evaluates every potential case. He looks at the facts, which agencies and adults were responsible for the child at the time, and which deadlines apply.
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The Firm Builds the Case
The firm investigates the placement history, obtains agency and facility records, and documents where the system failed. It has the resources to take on public agencies and other institutional defendants.
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Pursuing Accountability
Through negotiation, mediation, or trial, the firm pursues full accountability and fair compensation. You have direct access to Andy throughout the case.
Ohio Deadlines for Foster Care Abuse Claims
For childhood sexual abuse, Ohio Revised Code 2305.111 gives survivors 12 years from their 18th birthday to file a civil claim, which means until age 30. The 12-year period covers claims against the person who committed the abuse and other claims that result from the abuse, including claims against organizations. The Ohio Supreme Court has held that it also applies to claims against the state.
The clock can pause. If a defendant fraudulently concealed facts that a claim depends on, and the abuse happened on or after August 3, 2006, the deadline does not run until the survivor discovers, or reasonably should have discovered, those facts. A survivor simply not realizing the harm until later does not by itself pause the clock.
County agencies are the exception to watch. Ohio's law on public bodies sets a two-year limit for claims against them, extended while the survivor is a minor, and Ohio courts have not settled how that limit fits with the 12-year rule. If a county children services agency may be responsible, it is wise to act well before age 30, and ideally before age 20.
Ohio has no lookback window that revives claims already expired. Claims that expired before the 12-year rule took effect in 2006 stay expired. In fall 2026, Ohio lawmakers announced plans for a bill that would remove the civil deadline for childhood sexual abuse and open a window for older claims. As of October 2026 it has not become law, so today's deadlines still apply. Federal law sets no time limit for some claims based on federal child sexual exploitation and trafficking offenses, which can matter when a child in care was trafficked.
Acting sooner also helps the case itself. Agency records, witnesses, and former staff are easier to find while the placement is recent.
Free Consultation, No Fee Unless We Recover
Cost and fear should not stop a survivor from finding out whether they have a case. Ciano & Goldwasser handles foster care abuse cases on a contingency basis, so you pay nothing to start. The fee arrangement is explained privately during your consultation, and the conversation stays confidential whether or not you hire the firm.
No upfront costs: You pay nothing to start a case or to have it reviewed.
No Fee Guarantee: You owe no attorney fee unless the firm recovers compensation for you.
Costs advanced by the firm: The firm covers investigation and litigation costs as the case moves forward.
Confidential, with no obligation: What you share stays private, and you decide what happens next.
Andy Goldwasser is a personal injury attorney with a focus on sexual abuse cases and more than 25 years of practice. Attorneys, judges, and former clients regularly refer complex abuse cases to him. He works alongside Quenna Bell, who has supported his clients for about 20 years, from the first phone call through trial.
Andy Goldwasser's Commitment to Abused Children
Cleveland Rape Crisis Center Board of Directors
Andy serves on the Board of Directors of the Cleveland Rape Crisis Center and chairs its governance committee.
Co-Founder of a Nonprofit for Abused Children
Andy co-founded a nonprofit for abused children and leads a charitable foundation that funds grants for children and families from a portion of his fees.
National Crime Victim Bar Association
A member of the NCVBA, an organization for attorneys who represent crime victims, including survivors of sexual abuse.
Quenna Bell, CRCC Certified Ambassador
Quenna is a certified Cleveland Rape Crisis Center Ambassador, trained in supporting survivors of sexual violence, and is often the first person survivors speak with.
American Board of Trial Advocacy
Recently inducted into ABOTA, a national association of trial lawyers that admits members by peer nomination.
Best Lawyers in America
Listed in Best Lawyers in America for Personal Injury Plaintiff work since 2023, and in Best Lawyers continuously since 2015.
Questions About Foster Care Sexual Abuse Claims
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Possibly. A survivor of childhood sexual abuse in Ohio generally has until age 30 to file a civil claim. After 30, a claim may still be possible if a defendant fraudulently concealed facts about the abuse, for abuse on or after August 3, 2006, or if the abuse involved certain federal offenses that carry no time limit. Claims that expired before 2006 have not been revived. The answer depends on your dates and on who was responsible, so a consultation is the fastest way to know.
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Sometimes. County agencies are public bodies, and Ohio law gives public bodies immunity from many lawsuits, with exceptions written into the law. One exception applies when another Ohio statute expressly imposes liability, and Ohio courts have applied it to public bodies whose employees failed to report suspected child abuse as Ohio's reporting law requires. Claims against a county agency also face a shorter deadline question and limits on damages, so they need careful, early review.
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Private agencies and group home operators are private organizations, so the public immunity rules that protect county agencies do not shield them in the same way. Claims against them usually focus on negligence: how they screened and approved the home, trained and supervised staff, monitored the child, and responded to warning signs or reports.
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No. A civil claim does not depend on a criminal case. The Ohio Supreme Court has held that a claim under Ohio Revised Code 2307.60 does not require a criminal conviction, and Ohio's definition of childhood sexual abuse for civil deadlines does not require one either. Many civil cases go forward when prosecutors never filed charges.
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A claim can still exist. The focus is usually on the adults and agencies who were responsible for supervising the children: whether they knew or should have known about the risk, whether they separated the children or added supervision, and whether they acted on reports. The child who caused the harm is often not the main defendant.
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Your consultation is confidential, and nothing is filed without your decision. Some survivors file civil cases under a pseudonym such as "Doe" when the court allows it. Andy can explain how privacy works in your case and what you can expect before you decide anything.
Related Sexual Abuse Case Types We Handle
If your situation does not fit foster care, one of these pages may match it more closely. Every type of case the firm handles is listed on our case types page.
Civil claims for survivors of abuse before age 18, including adults who were abused as children.
Abuse that an organization allowed through careless hiring, weak supervision, or a cover-up.
Claims against daycare centers and providers that failed to protect children in their care.
Civil claims against traffickers and the businesses that profit from or enable trafficking.
Abuse by teachers and school staff, and claims against districts that failed to act.
Mentors, Chaperones, and Youth Leaders
Abuse by adults trusted to supervise children in youth programs and activities.
Talk With Andy Goldwasser About What Happened
Whether the abuse happened last month or decades ago, a free consultation with Andy Goldwasser can tell you whether you have a claim and how much time you have. The conversation is confidential, and you pay no fee unless the firm recovers compensation.