Sexual Abuse Lawyer – Kelly Clark Attorney at Law

Welcome to the website of Kelly Clark, attorney at law. Kelly Clark is a trial and appellate lawyer and a principal in the law firm of O’Donnell Clark & Crew LLP in Portland, Oregon. For nearly twenty years, Kelly Clark has been recognized as one of the leading advocates in the Western United States for victims of child sex abuse.

We know child sex abuse survivors must work through incredibly complex emotions of confusion, anger, shame, and depression as they take back their emotional and spiritual power from the perpetrators who abused them and the institutions that sponsored the relationships out of which the sexual abuse arose. We know this process often takes a long time. We also know for many survivors of sexual abuse, it is a huge step even to admit to themselves, let alone to others, that such unspeakable crimes were committed against them. Sometimes the process of disclosure itself can take years, even decades.

Lawsuits are not for everyone, but for some sex abuse survivors, holding the sexual abusers and institutions accountable legally is an important piece of their healing. Kelly Clark wants to help sex abuse survivors in any way possible–including discussing your legal options with you. Whether you ultimately decide to pursue justice or not, you should know what your rights are.

While serving in the Legislature, Kelly Clark co-authored Oregon‘s child sex abuse statute of limitations and the ban on child pornography. His 1999 win in the Oregon Supreme Court gained national attention for its landmark theory of liability for "institutions of trust" whose employees sexually abuse children.

Kelly Clark has had the honor of representing over 150 courageous men and women who were sexually abused as children by trusted adults. Often these stories of betrayal have arisen out of institutions of trust—churches, schools, youth and scouting clubs, athletic leagues and other organizations. While each case is different, of course, what they have in common is betrayal, sex abuse and deeply damaging results. Kelly views his job as helping people heal—taking back their power from the perpetrators and the organizations that sponsored them, to obtain some measure of civil justice in terms of monetary restitution and, finally, when appropriate, to achieve other, non-monetary aspects such as changes in institutional policies, apologies, or whatever else Kelly’s clients need to heal. To read more about Kelly Clark’s extensive work on behalf of child sex abuse survivors, click here.

In this work, Kelly has brought dozens of sexual abuse claims against various dioceses and order of the Roman Catholic Church in over half a dozen states around the country, as well as the Mormon Church, Jehovah’s Witnesses, other Protestant and Evangelical churches, the Boy Scouts, public and private schools, gymnastic leagues, ballet school—in short, any place where children trust adults, and where too often, adults abuse that trust.