I'm Jarrett Johnson. Over more than 30 years, I've represented dozens of women and men who survived abuse — many in religious boarding schools and other institutions that were supposed to protect them. I am also a survivor of serious childhood abuse myself. I know what it costs to say out loud what happened, and I know it doesn't get easier by waiting. You will never have to explain your story to someone who doesn't understand it.

The Missouri Bar honored me with the Lon O. Hocker Award — selected by judges for skill in the courtroom. In plain terms, it is the bar's formal way of saying: this is a lawyer who knows how to try a case and win it in front of a jury. That is the kind of advocate you want standing between you and an institution that has lawyers of its own.

My firm has deep experience applying expanded federal and state rights to help survivors overcome old barriers and finally hold abusers — and the institutions that enabled them — accountable. Even if what happened was years or decades ago, the law may still protect you. You are not alone. Taking action can be a profound step toward recovery and peace.