How Sexual Abuse Survivors Can Prepare to Testify in Civil Court

Sexual abuse survivors may sue the person, people, or entities that are responsible for the abuse in civil court. When building the case, survivors should prepare to testify about the abuse in court. While this can be difficult and painful, your lawyer can help you prepare for what lies ahead.

Your first step is to talk to your lawyer about all the facts about the abuse. Again, this may be hard to talk about, but it is a necessary step in the legal process. Your lawyer should help you determine what details are important and how to highlight them in your testimony. Your attorney should also prepare you to be cross-examined by the defendant’s lawyers.

Request a confidential legal review free of charge by calling our lawyers for victims of sexual abuse at The Law Office of Andrew Shubin at (814) 826-3586.

How Sexual Abuse Survivors Can Prepare Testimony in a Civil Case for Sexual Abuse

Testifying in court can be nerve-racking and intimidating, so you should prepare extensively with your lawyer.

Review the Abuse with Your Lawyer

You should begin by going through all the details of the abuse with your lawyer. This might be incredibly painful, but it is a necessary step in the judicial process. Your attorney can help you narrow down the details to only what is necessary to prove your claims in court.

Remember, each case is different. Some survivors may only need to testify about a few key details of the abuse, while others might need to explain the entire situation on the witness stand.

Focus on Only What is Necessary

When testifying, you should focus only on the necessary details. Some facts surrounding the case might not bear much weight in the courtroom or might not be disputed at all. In that case, those details might not need to come up in your testimony at all. Your lawyer can help you streamline your testimony so that it is accurate, truthful, and precise.

Rehearse Direct and Cross-Examination

Once we have an idea of what details to highlight in your testimony, you should rehearse your testimony with our lawyers for victims of sexual abuse. While your testimony on the stand must be honest and, at times, candid, you must be prepared. Doing so can help you make sure your answers are concise and accurate, and that you are ready for difficult questions during cross-examination.

What if a Sexual Abuse Survivor is Uncomfortable with Certain Questions on the Witness Stand?

When testifying about surviving sexual abuse, there will likely be questions you would rather not answer in front of a courtroom full of people. However, you must answer the questions asked of you.

Certain questions may be illegal for attorneys to ask. In such a case, your lawyer should loudly object to the question before you can answer. If the judge sustains your attorney’s objection, you do not have to answer the question. If the judge overrules the objection, you must answer.

How Sexual Abuse Survivors Should Testify in Court

When preparing your testimony, it is a good idea to focus not just on what you say but how you say it.

Always Tell the Truth

When testifying, you must always tell the truth. Lying on the witness stand is a criminal offense. Always be honest when testifying. Even stretching the truth may be considered dishonest testimony, and you could find yourself charged with perjury.

If you do not know the answer to a question, say so. It is not smart to grapple for an answer. Doing so may make you look unprepared or as if you do not even know what you are talking about.

Keep Answers Specific

You must fully answer each question without providing additional information. Keep your answers tailored to the lawyer’s question, and avoid superfluous details. Extraneous information may confuse the jury or make your testimony sound weak. Not only that, but you might inadvertently say something that can be twisted and used to raise doubt about your testimony.

Take Your Time

Do not rush to answer. The witness stand comes with a certain degree of pressure, and you might feel compelled to answer quickly. There is no time limit for the witness stand, and you do not have to answer each question as quickly as possible. If you need a moment to think and compose your answer, say so.

Do Sexual Abuse Survivors Have to Testify in Civil Court?

Generally, yes. Proving your sexual abuse claims may be incredibly difficult if you do not testify about what happened to you. Your testimony may be some of the strongest evidence we have.

Often, sexual abuse is committed in secret, and there might not be many other witnesses who can testify. As such, a survivor’s testimony is often crucial, and many cases cannot move forward if a survivor refuses to testify.

Preparing Sexual Abuse Survivors for Cross-Examination in Civil Court

You must prepare for cross-examination, which is when you are questioned on the witness stand by the defendant’s lawyers. Their questions may be designed to find flaws in your claims or inconsistencies in your story.

Stick to the Facts

Stay focused on what you know is true. The point of cross-examination is to undermine everything you said during direct examination and trip you up. You should remain stalwart in your testimony. When survivors are confident in their testimony, the jury may be more inclined to believe them.

Do Not Argue with the Opposing Attorney

The opposing attorney will challenge your story during cross-examination. This can be incredibly frustrating, even downright hurtful, but it is their job.

While it is reasonable to become emotional while providing testimony about enduring sexual abuse, you should avoid becoming combative with the opposing attorney. You might feel like they are accusing you of lying, but you must not snap back or argue.

Simply answer questions using the information and facts you know are true.

Do Not Guess Answers

The opposing attorney might ask you questions you cannot answer. It is alright to say “I don’t know.”

Guessing answers is a bad idea. You might say something you think sounds correct but is actually false and makes you look dishonest or untrustworthy to the jury, which is exactly what the opposing party wants.

Will the Defendant Be Present When a Sexual Abuse Survivor Testifies?

Yes. The constitutional right to confront witnesses against you applies only to criminal defendants, not civil defendants. However, in a civil lawsuit, the defendant can confront witnesses against them under the state’s Rules of Civil Procedure.

As such, you can expect the defendant to be in the room when you testify. Only under very special circumstances, like survivors who are children, may the defendant be asked to leave the room.

Ask Our Attorneys for Victims of Sexual Abuse for Help Today

Request a confidential legal review free of charge by calling our lawyers for victims of sexual abuse at The Law Office of Andrew Shubin at (814) 826-3586.