California Sex Trafficking Survivor Claims Attorney

Federal law gives trafficking survivors a civil claim against not only the perpetrator but anyone who knowingly benefited from participation in a venture they knew or should have known involved trafficking (18 U.S.C. § 1595, the TVPRA). California adds its own civil action with compensatory and punitive damages and attorney's fees (Civil Code § 52.5). Together they reach the businesses that looked away while profiting.

Trafficking does not happen in a vacuum. It happens in rooms rented night after night, with cash payments, persistent foot traffic, and staff who saw the signs. Hotels and motels, and in qualifying cases other businesses and online platforms, face civil exposure where the evidence shows they knew or should have known and benefited anyway.

Speaking with our office is confidential. We move at the survivor's pace, with trauma-informed interviewing, and we do not share your identity outside the firm without your authorization. Civil claims can often proceed with protective measures, and a criminal conviction of the trafficker is not required to bring a civil case.

Limitations periods for trafficking claims are longer than for ordinary injuries and may be tolled — federal TVPRA claims generally carry a 10-year period, and California provides extended and tolled periods for trafficking and abuse claims. Whether a specific claim remains timely depends on the facts; a confidential review answers it.