MISSOURI
CHILD SEX ABUSE SOLs
CURRENT CIVIL SOL
The civil SOL for CSA, trafficking, and CSAM claims is age 31 against perpetrators, and age twenty-six against other defendants, with a discovery rule.
CIVIL SOL SNAPSHOT
AGE CAP |
CSA: Age 31 Trafficking: Age 31 CSAM: Age 31 |
REVIVAL LAW |
None |
DISCOVERY TOLLING |
3 years against perpetrator (statutory) 5 years against all defendants (common law) |
Civil SOL History
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Age Cap |
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1990 |
General personal injury SOL of age 26 (age of majority, 21, plus 5 years)[i] and a CSA statute for claims against perpetrators with an SOL of age 23 (age 18, plus 5 years).[ii] |
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2004 |
Extended the CSA SOL against perpetrators to age 31 (age of majority, 21, plus 10 years).[iii] |
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2006 |
Added the crime of sexual trafficking of a child, which fell under the age 31 SOL.[iv] |
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2007 |
Added a CSAM civil cause of action and set the SOL at age 31 for claims against perpetrators.[v] |
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Revival Law |
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N/A |
No window or other SOL revival law. |
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Discovery |
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Common Law |
Missouri has a common law discovery rule, and in 2006, recognized its applicability to a CSA case where a victim repressed memories of abuse and later recovered them.[vi] The discovery rule runs from when “a reasonable person would have been put on notice that an injury and substantial damages may have occurred and would have undertaken to ascertain the extent of the damages.”[vii] |
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Statutory |
In 1990, Missouri adopted a statutory discovery rule, which gives a victim 3 years from “the date the plaintiff discovers or reasonably should have discovered that the injury or illness was caused by CSA” to file a lawsuit.[viii] This statutory discovery rule only applies to claims against the perpetrator of the abuse.[ix] In 2007, Missouri adopted a statute for victims of CSAM, which allows plaintiffs to bring their claims within 3 years of discovering their injury was caused by CSAM.[x] It is not yet well settled which types of defendants are subject to the discovery statute.[xi] |
[i] Mo. Rev. Stat. §§ 516.120(4) (five-year SOL), 516.170 (minority tolling); Powel v. Chaminade Coll. Preparatory, Inc., 197 S.W.3d 576, 584 (Mo. 2006) (recognizing common law discovery rule applies to repressed memories of abuse), as modified on denial of reh’g (Aug. 22, 2006). But see Dempsey v. Johnston, 299 S.W.3d 704, 706 (Mo. Ct. App. 2009) (finding common law discovery rule inapplicable where “Plaintiff always remembered what had happened to him and knew it was wrong,” even though he did not know of his resulting injuries).
[ii] Mo. Rev. Stat. § 537.046 (1990) (SOL).
[iii] Id. (2004) (SOL). See also State ex rel. Heart of Am. Council v. McKenzie, 484 S.W.3d 320, 325 (Mo. 2016) (finding CSA statute does not apply to claims against non-perpetrators).
[iv] Mo. Rev. Stat. §§ 566.210-11 (2006) (sexual trafficking of a child).
[v] Id. at § 537.047 (2007) (CSAM SOL).
[vi] Powel, supra note 549, at 584. But see Dempsey, supra note 549 (determining the common law discovery rule inapplicable where “Plaintiff always remembered what had happened to him and knew it was wrong” even though he didn’t know of his resulting injuries).
[vii] Powel, supra note 549, at 584 (stating that the cause of action accrues “when the damage resulting therefrom is sustained and is capable of ascertainment.”) (citing Mo. Ann. Stat. section 516.100 (2021)).
[viii] Mo. Ann. Stat. § 537.046(2) (2021). See also id. at § 537.047 (2021) (stipulating three-year discovery rule for victims of child pornography, in effect since 2007).
[ix] McKenzie, supra note 551, at 327 (finding CSA statute does not apply to claims against non-perpetrators).
[x] Mo. Ann. Stat. § 537.047(2) (stipulating this discovery rule is only applicable to causes of action arising after August 18, 2007).
[xi] See Doe v. Ratigan, 481 S.W.3d 36, 47–48 (Mo. Ct. App. 2015) (upholding summary judgment on plaintiff’s cause of action against the diocese for violation of section 537.047 based on vicarious liability, noting that, “the trial court could have entered summary judgment in favor of the Diocese . . . because . . . the law precluded finding the Diocese . . . liable for Ratigan’s violation of section 537.047 on the theory of respondeat superior, aiding and abetting, or ratification.”).
CURRENT MISSOURI CIVIL LAW
Mo. Rev. Stat. § 537.046. - Childhood sexual abuse, injuries or illness defined--action for damages may be brought, when
1. As used in this section, the following terms mean:
(1) “Childhood sexual abuse”, any act committed by the defendant against the plaintiff which act occurred when the plaintiff was under the age of eighteen years and which act would have been a violation of section 566.030, 566.040, 566.050, 566.060, 566.070, 566.080, 566.090, 566.100, 566.110, or 566.120, or section 568.020;
(2) “Injury” or “illness”, 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.
2.Any action to recover damages from injury or illness caused by childhood sexual abuse in an action brought pursuant to this section shall be commenced within ten years of the plaintiff attaining the age of twenty-one or within three years of the date the plaintiff discovers, or reasonably should have discovered, that the injury or illness was caused by childhood sexual abuse, whichever later occurs.
3. This section shall apply to any action commenced on or after August 28, 2004, including any action which would have been barred by the application of the statute of limitation applicable prior to that date.
Mo. Rev. Stat. § 537.047 - Civil action for damages authorized, sexual and pornographic offenses involving a minor--statute of limitations
1. Any person who, while a child or minor as defined by section 573.010, was a victim of a violation of sections 573.023, 573.025, 573.035, or 573.037, and who suffers physical or psychological injury or illness as a result of such violation, shall be entitled to bring a civil action to recover the actual damages sustained as a result of the violation, and shall also be entitled to recover the costs of the civil action and reasonable fees for attorneys and expert witnesses. A psychological injury or illness as described under this section need not be accompanied by physical injury or illness.
2. Any action described under this section shall be commenced within ten years of the plaintiff attaining the age of twenty-one, or within three years of the date the plaintiff discovers that the injury or illness was caused by the violation of an offense enumerated in subsection 1 of this section, whichever later occurs.
3. A cause of action under this section may arise only if the violation that caused the injury occurs on or after August 28, 2007.
Mo. Rev. Stat. § 516.120(4) - What actions within five years
Within five years:
(1) All actions upon contracts, obligations or liabilities, express or implied, except those mentioned in section 516.110, and except upon judgments or decrees of a court of record, and except where a different time is herein limited;
(2) An action upon a liability created by a statute other than a penalty or forfeiture;
(3) An action for trespass on real estate;
(4) An action for taking, detaining or injuring any goods or chattels, including actions for the recovery of specific personal property, or for any other injury to the person or rights of another, not arising on contract and not herein otherwise enumerated;
(5) An action for relief on the ground of fraud, the cause of action in such case to be deemed not to have accrued until the discovery by the aggrieved party, at any time within ten years, of the facts constituting the fraud.
Mo. Rev. Stat. § 516.170 - May delay filing of action, when
Except as provided in section 516.105, if any person entitled to bring an action in sections 516.100 to 516.370 specified, at the time the cause of action accrued be either within the age of twenty-one years, or mentally incapacitated, such person shall be at liberty to bring such actions within the respective times in sections 516.100 to 516.370 limited after such disability is removed.
Case law
Powel v. Chaminade Coll. Preparatory, Inc., 197 S.W.3d 576, 584 (Mo. 2006) (recognizing common law discovery rule applies to repressed memories of abuse), as modified on denial of reh’g (Aug. 22, 2006).
Dempsey v. Johnston, 299 S.W.3d 704, 706 (Mo. Ct. App. 2009) (common law discovery rule inapplicable where “Plaintiff always remembered what had happened to him and knew it was wrong” even though he did not know of his resulting injuries).
State ex rel. Heart of Am. Council v. McKenzie, 484 S.W.3d 320, 322 (Mo. 2016) (Finding that childhood sexual abuse statute § 537.046 does not apply to claims against non-perpetrator defendants.).
Doe v. Roman Catholic Diocese of Jefferson City, 862 S.W.2d 338, 339 (Mo. 1993). (While the legislature sought to apply the new SOL in § 537.046 even to claims that would have been expired already, the Missouri Supreme Court held that the revival provisions “contravene the [Missouri] constitutional prohibition against retrospective laws.”)
CURRENT CRIMINAL SOL
CSA: There is no SOL for felony and misdemeanor CSA offenses.
Trafficking: There is no SOL for trafficking.
CSAM: There is no SOL for CSAM violations.
CRIMINAL SOL SNAPSHOT
CSA |
No SOL |
TRAFFICKING |
No SOL |
CSAM |
No SOL |
Criminal SOL History
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Age Cap |
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2002 |
No SOL for Class A felonies and forcible rape or sodomy, age 28 for unlawful sexual offenses, 3 years from the offense for felonies and 1 year for misdemeanors.[i] |
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2004 |
Eliminated SOL for forcible rape and sodomy and attempts[ii] and extended to age 38 (age of majority, 18, plus 20 years) for all other unlawful sexual offenses.[iii] |
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2011 |
Extended SOL for the remaining unlawful sexual offenses by another 10 years to age 48 (age of majority, 18, plus 30 years.)[iv] |
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2014 |
Eliminated SOL for child molestation of a child under age 14, sexual exploitation, and pornography, by newly classifying these crimes in the first degree as class A felonies.[v] |
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2018 |
Eliminated SOL for all unlawful felony and misdemeanor sex offenses, including trafficking and CSAM violations, against those who are 18-years-old and younger.[vi] |
[i] Mo. Rev. Stat. §§ 556.036 (2002) & 556.037 (2002).
[ii] Id. at § 556.036 (2004) (SOL).
[iii] Id. at § 556.037 (2004) (no SOL).
[iv] Id. (2011) (no SOL).
[v] Id. at §§ 556.037 (2014) (no SOL), 566.067 (2014) (child molestation), 573.023 (2014) (exploitation), and 573.025 (2014) (CSAM).
[vi] Mo. Rev. Stat. §§ 556.037 (2018) (no SOL), 589.414 (2018) (listing sexual offenses), and 566.211 (2018) (trafficking). While the legislature sought to apply the new SOL even to claims that would have been expired already, the Missouri Supreme Court held that the revival provisions “contravene the [Missouri] constitutional prohibition against retrospective laws.” Doe v. Roman Catholic Diocese of Jefferson City, 862 S.W.2d 338, 339 (Mo. 1993).
CURRENT MISSOURI CRIMINAL LAW
Mo. Rev. Stat. § 556.037 - Time limitations for prosecutions for sexual offenses involving a person under eighteen
1. Notwithstanding the provisions of section 556.036, prosecutions for unlawful sexual offenses involving a person eighteen years of age or under may be commenced at any time.
2. For purposes of this section, “sexual offenses” include, but are not limited to, all offenses for which registration is required under sections 589.400 to 589.425.
Case Law
Doe v. Roman Catholic Diocese of Jefferson City, 862 S.W.2d 338, 339 (Mo. 1993) While the legislature sought to apply the new SOL even to claims that would have been expired already, the Missouri Supreme Court held that the revival provisions “contravene the [Missouri] constitutional prohibition against retrospective laws.”
The information provided is solely for informational purposes and is not legal advice. To determine the Missouri SOL in a particular case, contact a lawyer in the state.
Last Updated: December 4, 2023