UTAH

CHILD SEX ABUSE SOLs

Historical CSA SOL Treatise

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CURRENT CIVIL SOL

There is no civil SOL for CSA, trafficking, and CSAM claims against perpetrators. The SOL is age 22 against other defendants with a 4-year discovery rule.

CIVIL SOL SNAPSHOT

AGE CAP

CSA: None

Trafficking: None

CSAM: None

REVIVAL LAW

NONE

DISCOVERY TOLLING

4 YEARS AGAINST OTHER DEFENDANTS

2 YEAR AGAINST GOVERNMENT

CURRENT UTAH CIVIL LAW

Utah Code Ann. § 78B-2-308 - Legislative findings--Civil actions for sexual abuse of a child--Window for revival of time barred

(1) The Legislature finds that:

(a) child sexual abuse is a crime that hurts the most vulnerable in our society and destroys lives;

(b) research over the last 30 years has shown that it takes decades for children and adults to pull their lives back together and find the strength to face what happened to them;

(c) often the abuse is compounded by the fact that the perpetrator is a member of the victim’s family and when such abuse comes out, the victim is further stymied by the family’s wish to avoid public embarrassment;

(d) even when the abuse is not committed by a family member, the perpetrator is rarely a stranger and, if in a position of authority, often brings pressure to bear on the victim to ensure silence;

(e) in 1992, when the Legislature enacted the statute of limitations requiring victims to sue within four years of majority, society did not understand the long-lasting effects of abuse on the victim and that it takes decades for the healing necessary for a victim to seek redress;

(f) the Legislature, as the policy-maker for the state, may take into consideration advances in medical science and understanding in revisiting policies and laws shown to be harmful to the citizens of this state rather than beneficial; and

(g) the Legislature has the authority to change old laws in the face of new information, and set new policies within the limits of due process, fairness, and justice.

(2) As used in this section:

(a) “Child” means an individual under 18 years old.

(b) “Discovery” means when a victim knows or reasonably should know that the injury or illness was caused by the intentional or negligent sexual abuse.

(c) “Injury or illness” means either a physical injury or illness or a psychological injury or illness. A psychological injury or illness need not be accompanied by physical injury or illness.

(d) “Molestation” means that an individual, with the intent to arouse or gratify the sexual desire of any individual, touches the anus, buttocks, pubic area, or genitalia of any child, or the breast of a female child, or takes indecent liberties with a child as defined in Section 76-5-401.1.

(e) “Negligently” means a failure to act to prevent the child sexual abuse from further occurring or to report the child sexual abuse to law enforcement when the adult who could act knows or reasonably should know of the child sexual abuse and is the victim’s parent, stepparent, adoptive parent, foster parent, legal guardian, ancestor, descendant, brother, sister, uncle, aunt, first cousin, nephew, niece, grandparent, stepgrandparent, or any individual cohabiting in the child’s home.

(f) “Perpetrator” means an individual who has committed an act of sexual abuse.

(g) “Sexual abuse” means acts or attempted acts of sexual intercourse, sodomy, or molestation by an adult directed towards a child.

(h) “Victim” means an individual who was intentionally or negligently sexually abused. It does not include individuals whose claims are derived through another individual who was sexually abused.

(3)(a) A victim may file a civil action against a perpetrator for intentional or negligent sexual abuse suffered as a child at any time.

(b) A victim may file a civil action against a non-perpetrator for intentional or negligent sexual abuse suffered as a child:

(i) within four years after the individual attains the age of 18 years; or

(ii) if a victim discovers sexual abuse only after attaining the age of 18 years, that individual may bring a civil action for such sexual abuse within four years after discovery of the sexual abuse, whichever period expires later.

(4) The victim need not establish which act in a series of continuing sexual abuse incidents caused the injury complained of, but may compute the date of discovery from the date of discovery of the last act by the same perpetrator which is part of a common scheme or plan of sexual abuse.

(5) The knowledge of a custodial parent or guardian may not be imputed to an individual under the age of 18 years.

(6) A civil action may be brought only against a living individual who:

(a) intentionally perpetrated the sexual abuse;

(b) would be criminally responsible for the sexual abuse in accordance with Section 76-2-202; or

(7) A civil action against an individual described in Subsection (6)(a) or (b) for sexual abuse that was time barred as of July 1, 2016, may be brought within 35 years of the victim’s 18th birthday, or within three years of the effective date of this Subsection (7), whichever is longer.

(8) A civil action may not be brought as provided in Subsection (7) for:

(a) any claim that has been litigated to finality on the merits in a court of competent jurisdiction prior to July 1, 2016, however termination of a prior civil action on the basis of the expiration of the statute of limitations does not constitute a claim that has been litigated to finality on the merits; and

(b) any claim where a written settlement agreement was entered into between a victim and a defendant or perpetrator, unless the settlement agreement was the result of fraud, duress, or unconscionability. There is a rebuttable presumption that a settlement agreement signed by the victim when the victim was not represented by an attorney admitted to practice law in this state at the time of the settlement was the result of fraud, duress, or unconscionability.

Case law

Mitchell v. Roberts, 2020 UT 34 (holding Utah Code Ann. § 78B-2-308(7), which revived claims against perpetrators or those criminally liable with a 3-year window or up to when a victim reached age 53, unconstitutional).

Colosimo v. Roman Catholic Bishop, 2007 UT 25, P22, 156 P.3d 806, 812, 573 Utah Adv. Rep. 8, 2007 Utah LEXIS 58, 16 (Utah 2007): Repressing the memory of operative facts is, in effect, not knowing or being aware of those facts. But we limited our holding by “emphasiz[ing] that [the] case involve[d] a plaintiff who allege[d] that she totally repressed her memory; it [did] not involve a plaintiff who remembered the abuse but did not realize until later that the abuse caused the psychological harm suffered.” In other words, even though we implicitly recognized that victims of child sexual abuse may often be unable to causally connect their abuse to their injuries, we were unwilling to suggest that such an inability would toll the statute.

CURRENT CRIMINAL SOL

CSA: There is no SOL for many CSA felonies. The SOL is age 28 for claims involving unlawful sexual activity, and 4 to 8 eight years after the crime is reported for other felonies. The SOL is 2 years from the offense for misdemeanors.

Trafficking: There is no SOL for trafficking felonies.

CSAM: The SOL for CSAM violations is 4 years from the offense.

CRIMINAL SOL SNAPSHOT

OTHER FELNOIES

CSA	NO SOL
TRAFFICKING	NO SOL
CSAM	4 YEARS FROM OFFENSE

CURRENT UTAH CRIMINAL LAW

Utah Code Ann. § 76-1-301 - Offenses for which prosecution may be commenced at any time

(1) As used in this section:

(a) “Aggravating offense” means any offense incident to which a homicide was committed as described in Subsection 76-5-202(2)(a)(iv) or (v) or Subsection 76-5-202(2)(b).

(b) “Predicate offense” means an offense described in Subsection 76-5-203(1)(a) if a person other than a party as defined in Section 76-2-202 was killed in the course of the commission, attempted commission, or immediate flight from the commission or attempted commission of the offense.

(2) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this code, prosecution for the following offenses may be commenced at any time:

(a) capital felony;

(b) aggravated murder;

(d) manslaughter;

(e) child abuse homicide;

(f) aggravated kidnapping;

(g) child kidnapping;

(h) rape;

(i) rape of a child;

(j) object rape;

(k) object rape of a child;

(l) forcible sodomy;

(m) sodomy on a child;

(n) sexual abuse of a child;

(o) aggravated sexual abuse of a child;

(p) aggravated sexual assault;

(q) any predicate offense to a murder or aggravating offense to an aggravated murder;

(r) aggravated human trafficking or aggravated human smuggling in violation of Section 76-5-310;

(s) aggravated exploitation of prostitution involving a child, under Section 76-10-1306; or

(t) human trafficking of a child, under Section 76-5-308.5.

Utah Code Ann. § 76-1-302- Time limitations for prosecution of offenses--Provisions if DNA evidence would identify the defendant--Commencement of prosecution

(1) Except as otherwise provided, a prosecution for:

(a) a felony or negligent homicide shall be commenced within four years after it is committed, except that prosecution for:

(i) forcible sexual abuse shall be commenced within eight years after the offense is committed, if within four years after its commission the offense is reported to a law enforcement agency; and

(ii) incest shall be commenced within eight years after the offense is committed, if within four years after its commission the offense is reported to a law enforcement agency;

(b) a misdemeanor other than negligent homicide shall be commenced within two years after it is committed; and

(2)(a) Notwithstanding Subsection (1), prosecution for the offenses listed in Subsections 76-3-203.5(1)(c)(i)(A) through (CC) may be commenced at any time if the identity of the person who committed the crime is unknown but DNA evidence is collected that would identify the person at a later date.

(b) Subsection (2)(a) does not apply if the statute of limitations on a crime has run as of May 5, 2003, and no charges have been filed.

(3) If the statute of limitations would have run but for the provisions of Subsection (2) and identification of a perpetrator is made through DNA, a prosecution shall be commenced within four years of confirmation of the identity of the perpetrator.

(4) A prosecution is commenced upon:

(a) the finding and filing of an indictment by a grand jury;

(b) the filing of a complaint or information; or

Utah Code Ann. § 76-5-401.2. Unlawful sexual conduct with a 16- or 17-year-old--Penalties--Limitations

(1)(a) As used in this section:

(i) “Indecent liberties” means the same as that term is defined in Section 76-5-401.1.

(ii) “Minor” means an individual who is 16 years old or older, but younger than 18 years old, at the time the sexual conduct described in Subsection (2) occurred.

(b) Terms defined in Section 76-1-101.5 apply to this section.

(2)(a) Under circumstances not amounting to an offense listed in Subsection (4), an actor commits unlawful sexual conduct with a minor if the actor:

(i)(A) is seven or more years older but less than 10 years older than the minor at the time of the sexual conduct;

(B) engages in any conduct listed in Subsection (2)(b); and

(ii)(A) is 10 or more years older than the minor at the time of the sexual conduct; and

(B) engages in any conduct listed in Subsection (2)(b).

(b) As used in Subsection (2)(a), “sexual conduct” refers to when the actor:

(i) has sexual intercourse with the minor;

(ii) engages in any sexual act with the minor involving the genitals of one individual and the mouth or anus of another individual;

(iii)(A) causes the penetration, however slight, of the genital or anal opening of the minor by any foreign object, substance, instrument, or device, including a part of the human body; and

(B) causes the penetration with the intent to cause substantial emotional or bodily pain to any individual or with the intent to arouse or gratify the sexual desire of any individual; or

(iv) with the intent to cause substantial emotional or bodily pain to any individual or with the intent to arouse or gratify the sexual desire of any individual:

(A) touches the anus, buttocks, pubic area, or any part of the genitals of the minor;

(B) touches the breast of a female minor; or

(c)(i) Any touching, even if accomplished through clothing, is sufficient to constitute the relevant element of a violation of Subsection (2)(a).

(ii) Any penetration, however slight, is sufficient to constitute the relevant element under Subsection (2)(b)(i).

(iii) Any touching, however slight, is sufficient to constitute the relevant element under Subsection (2)(b)(ii).

(3)(a) A violation of Subsection (2)(b)(i), (ii), or (iii) is a third degree felony.

(b) A violation of Subsection (2)(b)(iv) is a class A misdemeanor.

(4) The offenses referred to in Subsection (2)(a) are:

(a) rape, in violation of Section 76-5-402;

(b) object rape, in violation of Section 76-5-402.2;

(d) forcible sexual abuse, in violation of Section 76-5-404;

(e) aggravated sexual assault, in violation of Section 76-5-405; or

(f) an attempt to commit an offense listed in Subsections (4)(a) through (e).

Case Law

State v. Toombs, 380 P.3d 390, 394 (Utah Ct. App. 2016) (“a prosecution may nevertheless be commenced for … rape of a child, object rape of a child, sodomy upon a child, or sexual abuse of a child within four years after the report of the offense to a law enforcement agency”).

The information provided is solely for informational purposes and is not legal advice. To determine the Utah SOL in a particular case, contact a lawyer in the state.

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Last Updated: December 5, 2023