If you are asking whether you have a clergy abuse case in Rhode Island, this page is meant to help you think it through for yourself, not to push you toward a phone call. Whether a viable claim exists depends on a handful of specific factors, and you can read through them below and form your own preliminary sense before you talk to anyone. There is no substitute for a confidential review of your actual facts by a Rhode Island attorney — but you should be able to leave this page understanding the questions that matter. Marin & Murphy Law Firm is a complex-litigation firm that represents survivors of clergy sexual abuse in Rhode Island under the state’s 2026 revival window.
Talk With Us — Confidentially
If you'd like to talk with someone about whether Rhode Island's revival window applies to your situation, you can reach us below. What you share is confidential, there is no cost to ask, and contacting us does not commit you to anything.
Confidential · Free · Speak with a Rhode Island attorney — in person, by phone, or by video.
Do I Have a Case?
An honest answer takes one message, costs nothing, and commits you to nothing.
Who can file?
Anyone sexually abused as a child (under 18) in Rhode Island — by conduct that would have been a criminal sexual offense — including claims against institutions. Previously time-barred claims qualify during the window. More on who can file
What’s the deadline?
The window closes June 30, 2028. Outside it: the later of 35 years from the abuse or 7 years from discovery, paused until age 18. More on the deadline
Is this confidential?
Yes. What you share is confidential, there is no cost to ask, and contacting us does not commit you to anything. More on confidentiality
Is it a bad idea to just ask — without committing to anything?
A sentence or two is enough. You don’t have to tell the whole story — not now, not ever, unless you choose to.
What happens when you press send: one reply, from our firm, by the method you chose. We will not call unless you ask us to. Nothing is filed, and no one is contacted. You can stop at any time.
Rather talk? (888) 348-2735 — confidential, no cost to ask. Talk when you’re ready.
Matthew T. Marin — Marin & Murphy Law Firm, Rhode Island
Everything you share is confidential — even if you never hire us. There is no cost to ask, and no fee unless you recover. You control what happens, and when.
The factors that decide whether a claim is viable
A clergy abuse claim under the revival window generally turns on five questions. None of them is a trick, and you can consider each one honestly as it applies to you. They are starting points for a conversation, not a test you pass or fail.
1. Was the abuse sexual abuse that occurred when you were a child? The revival window applies to childhood sexual abuse — conduct that occurred while you were a minor. The law’s discovery and revival provisions are built around the reality that survivors often do not connect the harm to the abuse until many years later — something we discuss on why survivors come forward decades later.
2. Did it happen in Rhode Island, or involve a Rhode Island institution? The 2026 law is a Rhode Island statute. Cases generally involve abuse that occurred in Rhode Island or an institution based here — most often the Diocese of Providence. If the connection to Rhode Island is unclear in your situation, that is exactly the kind of thing worth asking about.
3. Was the abuse committed by clergy or by someone within an institution’s care? These cases typically involve a priest, member of a religious order, or another person the institution placed in a position of trust over children. The individual abuser may have died — that does not, by itself, end a claim, because the claim usually runs against the institution.
4. Is there an institution that can be held responsible? This is often the most important factor, because the institution — not only the individual — is usually the defendant that matters. An institution can be liable for its own conduct in hiring, supervising, and retaining the abuser, and in how it responded to warning signs. We explain this on clergy abuse institutional liability in Rhode Island, and the situation where the abuser has died on can I sue if the priest has died.
5. Can it still be brought in time? Rhode Island’s revival window reopened previously time-barred claims, but revived claims must be commenced by no later than June 30, 2028. The age of the abuse does not by itself bar a claim — the revival reaches conduct going back decades — but the filing deadline is fixed. Our pages on who can file and the filing deadline go through eligibility and timing in more detail.
How to read your own answers
If your situation fits most or all of these — childhood sexual abuse, connected to Rhode Island, by clergy or within an institution, with an institution that may bear responsibility, and time to file before the window closes — then it is worth having your facts reviewed. If one or two are uncertain, that does not mean there is no claim; it means there are specific questions a lawyer can help answer. And if you are not sure about any of this, that is normal — these are exactly the things a confidential consultation is for. What this page cannot do is tell you whether your particular claim is viable, because that depends on facts only a review of your situation can establish.
A note on what comes next, and what doesn’t
Reaching out does not commit you to filing anything. A consultation is a conversation in which a lawyer listens to what happened and tells you, honestly, whether there appears to be a viable claim and what pursuing it would involve. It is confidential, it costs nothing, and the decision afterward is entirely yours — including the decision to do nothing. If you are not ready to talk to a lawyer at all, that is a valid choice; the Rhode Island Attorney General maintains survivor resources that are not connected to any law firm.
Talk with us — confidentially
If, having thought it through, you would like your specific facts reviewed, you can reach us below. What you share is confidential, there is no cost to ask, and contacting us does not commit you to anything. The window is open only until June 30, 2028.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I know if I have a clergy abuse case in Rhode Island? A viable claim generally turns on five factors: whether the abuse was childhood sexual abuse, whether it is connected to Rhode Island or a Rhode Island institution, whether it was committed by clergy or someone within an institution’s care, whether an institution can be held responsible, and whether it can still be filed before the revival window closes on June 30, 2028. If most of these fit, it is worth having your facts reviewed; only a confidential review can tell you whether your particular claim is viable.
Can I have a case if the priest who abused me has died? Possibly, yes. The claim that carries these cases is usually against the institution — for its own conduct in hiring, supervising, retaining, and overseeing the abuser — and that liability does not disappear when the individual perpetrator dies. The death of the abuser does not by itself end a survivor’s claim against the institution.
Is it too late if the abuse happened decades ago? Not necessarily. Rhode Island’s 2026 revival window reopens certain previously time-barred childhood sexual abuse claims, and the revival reaches conduct going back decades — so the age of the abuse does not by itself bar a claim. But revived claims must be commenced by no later than June 30, 2028, so timing should be reviewed promptly.
Does contacting a lawyer commit me to filing a lawsuit? No. A consultation is a confidential conversation to learn whether there appears to be a viable claim and what pursuing it would involve. It costs nothing, and the decision afterward — including the decision to do nothing — is entirely yours.
Related on this site: why you need a lawyer, how long a case takes, what evidence you need, and the claim process.
About This Information
About this information: This page is general legal information, not legal advice, and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Whether any individual has a claim depends on the specific facts and must be evaluated by a licensed Rhode Island attorney.
About the Attorney General’s report: The findings of the Rhode Island Attorney General’s 2026 report are the results of an investigation, not determinations of civil or criminal liability by a court. “Credibly accused” is the Attorney General’s investigative standard; it is not a criminal conviction. Individuals who have been charged are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
About the law’s status: Rhode Island’s revival-window law (P.L. 2026 ch. 081, effective July 1, 2026) is new. As of the date of publication, no court has ruled on whether the revival of previously time-barred claims against institutions is constitutional. We make no representation about how any court will rule.
Updated July 2026.