Liability for Abuse: Opportunities and Advice

Questioner

From birth to age eighteen, I was severely physically and emotionally abused and neglected by my mother. This caused me all sorts of problems (sleep problems, depression, PTSD) and recently I was diagnosed with a borderline disorder. My psychologist indicated that this disorder is strongly related to the events in my childhood and the 'treatment' I received from my mother. According to her, it is 'impossible' that I could have gotten out of this without (serious) developmental problems. Because of all this I incur (huge) expenses in the area of ​​psychological treatment for the processing of traumas, costs for an education adapted to my reduced capabilities and loss of income due to reduced work capacity. I want to recover these costs from my mother by starting a civil procedure. As the perpetrator of an unlawful act and the improper execution of parental authority, I hold her liable for the aforementioned financial damage suffered by me. What are my chances of winning such a procedure and who should I hire? Am I entitled to a pro bono lawyer? (I have very little income) How should I sue my mother? Thanks in advance for your answer.

Lawyer

What unpleasant experiences that must have been. Good luck with it. Whether you have a chance of success in holding your mother liable and receiving compensation is very difficult to estimate. In law, the principle is: he who claims, proves. This means that you will have to make it plausible that your mother acted unlawfully in carrying out her task (parental authority). You should preferably have as many facts from the past of abuse confirmed by witnesses. I fear that with a diagnosis from your psychologist alone, you will not succeed. The psychologist was not present at the actual acts and bases his or her story on your story. Has there never been a report of abuse? Or was the Youth Care Office perhaps involved in the upbringing? That would certainly help substantiate the actual abuse. I assume that the relationship with your mother is now bad. You can count on the fact that if you hold your mother liable, she will very likely deny liability. Incidentally, holding her liable starts with a registered letter, so not immediately with legal proceedings. If your mother denies liability and you want to continue, then the chance of legal proceedings is high. For that, you will indeed have to hire a lawyer. There are undoubtedly lawyers in your place of residence who have free consultation hours, so go in there and present your case. Good luck.