Delaware Psychiatrist and Psychologist Sexual Abuse Lawyers: Claims for Patients

Sexual contact between a mental health provider and a patient is never part of treatment. Professional ethics rules for psychiatrists, psychologists, counselors, and therapists forbid it, because the treatment relationship gives the provider power over a person who came to them for help. If a provider sexually abused you or your child, you may have a civil claim against the provider and the practice or facility that employed them.

The Sharma Law Firm represents patients and families in civil sexual abuse claims arising in Delaware mental health settings. For every type of abuse case we handle, see our Delaware sexual abuse lawyer page.

How abuse by a mental health provider happens

Therapy asks patients to share their most private thoughts. A provider who abuses that trust may start by blurring boundaries: extending sessions, contacting a patient outside of treatment, sharing personal details, offering hugs, or suggesting that the patient is special. Some providers describe sexual contact as therapeutic or as a mutual relationship. It is neither.

Abuse can happen in a private practice, a hospital psychiatric unit, a residential treatment program, a school counseling office, or through telehealth. Patients who are in crisis, who have a history of trauma, or who are young are especially vulnerable, and many blame themselves or keep seeing the provider after the abuse begins. None of that prevents a claim.

Child patients: a claim may be brought at any time

Teenagers and children in therapy, inpatient care, or residential treatment are protected by a specific Delaware rule. Under 18 Del. C. § 6856(3)(a), a civil claim based on sexual abuse of a child patient by a health-care provider may be brought at any time after the abuse, where the acts would be a criminal offense under Delaware law.

That rule works alongside 10 Del. C. § 8145, which permits a civil action at any time for sexual abuse of a minor by an adult, where the conduct would be a Delaware criminal sexual offense. If you were a minor when a psychiatrist, psychologist, or other provider abused you, you can talk with a lawyer about a claim now, even if you are an adult.

Delaware's 2007 Child Victims' Act opened a two-year window for certain expired childhood claims, and that window has closed. Whether the current "at any time" language reaches conduct from before the law changed can depend on the facts and case law.

Adult patients: deadlines are short

If you were 18 or older, the general Delaware deadline for a sexual abuse claim is two years under 10 Del. C. § 8119. The type of claim and the date it accrued can matter. Mental health cases often involve delay, because patients may not recognize the abuse for what it was until after leaving the provider's care, or until a later therapist helps them see it. That is exactly why you should not wait to get Delaware legal advice. Claims arising in a health-care setting can also raise procedural questions that a lawyer should review early.

These are civil deadlines, not criminal prosecution deadlines. Criminal limitation rules vary by offense, and some serious crimes have no limitation period.

Holding practices and facilities responsible

A group practice, hospital, or treatment facility may be responsible if it failed to check a provider's license history and prior complaints, ignored reports from patients or staff, did not supervise providers who worked with minors or inpatients, or let a provider keep treating patients during an investigation.

You do not have to report to police or a licensing board to bring a civil claim. You may choose to file a complaint with the Delaware Division of Professional Regulation, which oversees licensed mental health professionals, but that is your decision. Your conversations with the firm are confidential, and courts can sometimes allow a survivor to proceed under initials or a pseudonym.

If the abuse happened in a medical rather than mental health setting, see our page on sexual abuse by doctors and hospital staff in Delaware. If it involved a child, see child sexual abuse claims under Delaware law.

Our contingency fee is 33.33% of the recovery, and there is no attorney's fee unless we recover. The firm advances all case costs. If we win, those costs are reimbursed from the settlement or recovery. If we lose, the firm absorbs the costs and you owe nothing. The Sharma Law Firm is veteran-owned. Hablamos español: paralegals Santiago Araujo, Humberto Buitrago, and Isaac Durango Figueroa all speak Spanish.

Frequently asked questions

Is a therapist ever allowed to have a sexual relationship with a patient?

Professional ethics rules for psychiatrists, psychologists, and licensed counselors prohibit sexual contact with patients. A provider calling it consensual does not make it part of treatment.

How long do I have to sue a psychiatrist or psychologist in Delaware?

If you were a child patient, 18 Del. C. § 6856(3)(a) allows a claim at any time. If you were an adult, the general deadline is two years under 10 Del. C. § 8119. Contact a lawyer promptly.

Can I sue the mental health facility or practice?

Possibly. A practice or facility may be responsible if it failed to screen, supervise, or respond to complaints about the provider.

Will my therapy records be used against me?

Records can become part of a case, and courts have ways to limit who sees sensitive information. We talk through privacy concerns with you before anything is filed.

I kept seeing the provider after it started. Do I still have a claim?

Yes, that does not by itself end a claim. Continuing treatment is common when a provider holds power over a patient.

Do I need to report to police or a licensing board first?

No. A civil claim does not require a police report, criminal charges, or a licensing complaint.

Free, confidential case review. Please don't include sensitive details until we've spoken. Call (302) 781-3077 any time, or use the case review form on this page. Contacting the firm does not create an attorney-client relationship.