Colorado Institutional Sexual Abuse Lawyer Marlo Greer
Holding Institutions Accountable for Sexual Abuse
When a school, church, youth program, hotel, medical provider, or employer fails to protect the people in its care, sexual abuse can happen. Marlo Greer, known as The Pink Advocate, and the team at Greer Law Group represent survivors in civil claims against the institutions and organizations whose failures allowed that abuse to happen.
A criminal case can hold an abuser accountable, but it does not ask the harder question: who had the power to stop this, and what did they do with it? A civil claim does. It can also result in compensation for counseling, medical care, lost income, and the long-term harm the abuse has caused.
Please note: Greer Law Group handles claims against institutions and organizations. We do not take cases against an individual acting alone, such as a family member, spouse, partner, or acquaintance, when no organization shares responsibility. If that describes your situation, the Colorado Coalition Against Sexual Assault and the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 800-656-4673 can connect you with support.
Call Marlo Greer and the team at Greer Law Group at our Denver office at 303-331-6460 for a free, confidential consultation.
What Kinds of Institutions Can Be Held Responsible?
Abuse rarely happens because of one person alone. Often an organization ignored warning signs, skipped a background check, left an adult alone with children against its own policy, or moved a problem employee instead of reporting them. Greer Law Group handles claims involving:
- Schools, colleges, and school districts
- Churches, youth ministries, and other religious organizations
- Youth sports teams, camps, scouting, and after-school programs
- Daycare centers, foster placements, and residential treatment facilities
- Hotels and other businesses that failed to keep guests safe (read more about hotel sexual assault claims)
- Hospitals, clinics, and other medical providers
- Employers whose workplaces allowed abuse to happen
- Jails, prisons, and other detention facilities
Where Institutional Abuse Happens
Churches and Religious Organizations
In Colorado, clergy members are among the people required by law to report suspected child abuse, and the report must be made immediately and no later than 24 hours after receiving the information (C.R.S. 19-3-304). The duty does not apply when a clergy member’s only information came from a confidential communication protected by the clergy privilege, but it does apply if the clergy member also has reasonable cause to know or suspect abuse from another source (C.R.S. 19-3-304 and 13-90-107(1)(c)).
The 182-day notice of claim requirement described below applies to claims against public entities and their employees (C.R.S. 24-10-109). A private church is not a public entity under the Colorado Governmental Immunity Act (C.R.S. 24-10-103).
Schools, Colleges, and Campuses
Public and private school officials and employees are required to report suspected child abuse under the same Colorado law (C.R.S. 19-3-304). If the school is a public entity, such as a public school district, a written notice of claim is generally required within 182 days after the injury is discovered (C.R.S. 24-10-109).
Schools that receive federal funding are also subject to Title IX (20 U.S.C. 1681). In Gebser v. Lago Vista Independent School District, 524 U.S. 274 (1998), the U.S. Supreme Court held that a school district can be liable for damages under Title IX for a teacher’s sexual harassment of a student when a district official with authority to take corrective action had actual notice of the misconduct and was deliberately indifferent to it.
Daycares, Camps, and Youth Programs
Colorado’s Child Sexual Abuse Accountability Act, described below, allows claims against an organization that operated or managed a youth-related activity or program if the organization knew or should have known that the person or program posed a risk of sexual misconduct against a minor, and the abuse happened while the child was participating in that program (C.R.S. 13-20-1202).
The Colorado Department of Early Childhood licenses child care facilities in Colorado that provide less than 24-hour care, and families can search licensed programs through Colorado Shines. You can read more on our Colorado child sexual abuse lawyer page.
Youth and Amateur Sports
The U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee is headquartered in Colorado Springs. Under Colorado law, directors, coaches, assistant coaches, and athletic program personnel employed by a private sports organization or program are required to report suspected child abuse (C.R.S. 19-3-304).
Under federal law, an adult authorized by a national governing body, or by an amateur sports organization that takes part in interstate or international amateur competition, to interact with minors must report suspected child abuse, including sexual abuse, within 24 hours to the agency designated by the U.S. Attorney General (34 U.S.C. 20341). The U.S. Center for SafeSport has jurisdiction over the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee and each national governing body with regard to safeguarding amateur athletes against abuse, including sexual abuse (36 U.S.C. 220541).
What Do I Have to Prove to Hold an Institution Responsible?
To hold an organization accountable for abuse, you will generally need to show four things:
- That the organization owed you a legal duty of care, such as a duty to keep students, members, guests, patients, or program participants reasonably safe
- That it failed to meet that duty, for example by ignoring complaints, failing to properly screen or supervise an employee or volunteer, or failing to take reasonable security measures
- That this failure caused or contributed to the abuse
- That you suffered harm as a result
The proof usually lives in personnel files, incident reports, internal emails, policies, and earlier complaints that the organization would rather not produce. Finding it is the work.
How Long Do I Have to File a Claim in Colorado?
Colorado lawmakers recognize that coming forward about sexual abuse is extremely difficult, and it can take years before a survivor is ready. A Colorado law signed by the Governor in April 2021 (Senate Bill 21-073) removed the time limit for filing a civil lawsuit based on sexual misconduct, including claims against organizations that are not the abuser, starting January 1, 2022. Before that change, the deadline was generally six years, although it could be paused in some situations, such as when the survivor was a minor.
The new law applies to claims that arise on or after January 1, 2022. It also applies to older claims if the previous deadline had not yet run by January 1, 2022. Whether an older claim can still be filed depends on the facts, so it is important to speak with a lawyer about your situation.
One deadline moves quickly. If the organization is a public entity, such as a public school district or a government-run facility, a written notice of claim may be required within 182 days of discovering the injury. Missing it can end a valid case before anyone looks at the facts.
What If the Abuse Happened When I Was a Child?
In 2021, Colorado also passed the Child Sexual Abuse Accountability Act. It allows claims against an organization that operates or manages a youth-related activity or program if the organization knew or should have known that a person or program posed a risk of sexual misconduct against a minor, and the abuse happened while the child was taking part in that program (C.R.S. 13-20-1202). These organizations can include public entities, such as school districts and district preschool programs.
The Act gave survivors of abuse that happened between 1960 and 2021 until January 1, 2025, to file under the Act, and that window has now closed (C.R.S. 13-20-1203). In 2023, the Colorado Supreme Court also ruled that the law cannot be used to revive claims for abuse before 2022 that were already time-barred under earlier law (Aurora Public Schools v. A.S., 2023 CO 39). The ruling does not affect claims whose earlier deadline had not run by January 1, 2022. Because these rules are complex, a lawyer should review the facts of any older claim.
Colorado law also requires many professionals to report suspected child abuse when they have reasonable cause to know or suspect it, including teachers and other school employees, doctors, nurses and other medical professionals, mental health professionals, social workers, clergy members, and juvenile parole and probation officers. When a mandatory reporter knew and said nothing, that failure can become part of the case.
What Kinds of Damages Can I Recover?
Economic damages cover documented costs, such as counseling and therapy, medical treatment, travel to appointments, lost wages, and lost future earnings.
Non-economic damages cover harm that does not come with a receipt, such as emotional distress, post-traumatic stress disorder, damage to relationships and trust, and the loss of enjoyment of life.
Punitive damages (called exemplary damages in Colorado) may also be available when the conduct was fraudulent, malicious, or willful and wanton. They cannot be requested in the original complaint, but the claim can be added later if the evidence supports it. In most cases they cannot be more than the actual damages awarded. Public entities, such as public school districts, cannot be required to pay punitive damages (C.R.S. 24-10-114).
Why Work With Marlo Greer?
Institutional abuse cases turn on records, prior complaints, and internal policies that nobody volunteers. Marlo Greer has built her career on institutional accountability, and she serves on the Board of Directors of CHILD USA, the national think tank working to protect children from abuse and neglect.
You will talk to a lawyer, not an intake script. Nothing gets filed because you asked a question. You decide how much to share and when, and the conversation is confidential.
Call Greer Law Group today at 303-331-6460 for a free and confidential consultation.
Institutional Sexual Abuse FAQs
No. Marlo Greer and Greer Law Group handle civil claims against institutions and organizations whose failures allowed sexual abuse to happen, such as schools, churches, youth programs, hotels, medical providers, employers, and detention facilities. The firm does not take cases against an individual acting alone, such as a family member, spouse, partner, or acquaintance, when no organization shares responsibility.
For claims that arise on or after January 1, 2022, Colorado has no time limit for a civil lawsuit based on sexual misconduct, including claims against organizations that are not the abuser (Senate Bill 21-073). Older claims may still be filed if the earlier deadline had not run by January 1, 2022. If the organization is a public entity, a written notice of claim may be required within 182 days of discovering the injury.
Possibly. Colorado’s Child Sexual Abuse Accountability Act allows claims against an organization that operates or manages a youth-related activity or program if it knew or should have known that a person or program posed a risk of sexual misconduct against a minor while the child was taking part in its program. In 2023 the Colorado Supreme Court held that the law cannot revive claims for abuse before 2022 that were already time-barred (Aurora Public Schools v. A.S., 2023 CO 39), and the Act’s filing window for abuse between 1960 and 2021 closed on January 1, 2025, so a lawyer should review any older claim.
You will generally need to show four things: the organization owed you a legal duty of care, it failed to meet that duty, that failure caused or contributed to the abuse, and you suffered harm as a result. The proof is often in personnel files, incident reports, internal emails, policies, and earlier complaints.
Economic damages cover documented costs such as counseling, medical treatment, and lost wages. Non-economic damages cover harms such as emotional distress, post-traumatic stress disorder, and loss of enjoyment of life. Punitive damages, called exemplary damages in Colorado, may be available when the conduct was fraudulent, malicious, or willful and wanton, and in most cases cannot be more than the actual damages awarded.
Call Greer Law Group at 303-331-6460 for a free, confidential consultation. You will talk to a lawyer, not an intake script, and nothing gets filed because you asked a question.