Child’s Rights Violations

Michigan Child's Rights Violation Claims

Children are among the most vulnerable members of our society, and when institutions that are supposed to protect them — schools, daycares, foster care systems, juvenile detention facilities — instead cause harm through abuse, neglect, or deliberate rights violations, the legal response must be aggressive and uncompromising. Koussan Law represents Michigan children and their families in civil rights and personal injury claims arising from institutional failures, and we bring the same intensity that produced a $14,950,000 jury verdict against an institutional defendant to every child's rights case.

Michigan's Child Protection Framework

Michigan's legal framework for protecting children operates on multiple levels. The Michigan Child Protection Law (MCL § 722.621–722.638) governs the reporting and investigation of child abuse and neglect, establishing mandatory reporting obligations for teachers, healthcare providers, social workers, and other professionals who work with children. The Juvenile Code (MCL § 712A.1–712A.32) provides procedural safeguards for children in the court system. Beyond these, specific statutes create causes of action when institutions violate children's rights: MCL § 600.5851 tolls the statute of limitations for minors, meaning the clock doesn't start running on most claims until the child turns 18 — giving families and the children themselves extended time to seek justice.

School Negligence and Abuse

Schools have a duty to provide a safe environment for students, and when they fail — through negligent supervision, physical abuse by staff, sexual assault by employees, or deliberate indifference to bullying — Michigan law provides multiple avenues for recovery. Negligence claims against school districts involve governmental immunity analysis under MCL § 691.1407, but exceptions exist for gross negligence of individual employees, motor vehicle accidents, and dangerous conditions of public buildings under MCL § 691.1406. For constitutional violations — such as excessive force by school resource officers or deliberate indifference to known abuse — 42 U.S.C. § 1983 federal civil rights claims bypass governmental immunity entirely and allow recovery of compensatory damages, punitive damages, and attorney fees.

Sexual Abuse in Institutional Settings

Sexual abuse of children in schools, churches, youth organizations, and other institutional settings creates liability for both the individual perpetrator and the institution that failed to prevent the abuse. Under MCL § 600.5851b, Michigan provides an extended statute of limitations for childhood sexual abuse claims — victims can file suit until age 28 or within three years of discovering the connection between their injuries and the abuse, whichever is later. This extended timeline recognizes that many survivors don't fully process what happened to them until years or decades later. Institutional defendants face liability theories including negligent hiring, negligent supervision, negligent retention, and failure to report under the mandatory reporting requirements of MCL § 722.623.

Foster Care System Failures

Children in Michigan's foster care system have constitutional rights that the state cannot violate. When MDHHS or a private foster care agency places a child in a dangerous home, fails to investigate reports of abuse, or leaves a child in harmful conditions, 42 U.S.C. § 1983 claims allow recovery against the responsible government actors. The Sixth Circuit has recognized that foster children have a substantive due process right to be free from harm while in state custody. These cases are factually and legally demanding, requiring extensive document discovery from MDHHS, depositions of caseworkers, and expert testimony on child welfare standards.

Bullying, Harassment, and School Inaction

When schools are aware of persistent bullying or harassment and fail to act, the consequences can be catastrophic — including self-harm and suicide. Koussan Law has handled cases where school inaction in the face of known bullying contributed to a student's death. Title IX claims apply when harassment is based on sex, and state-law negligence claims target the school's failure to implement anti-bullying policies required under MCL § 380.1310b (Matt's Safe School Law). These cases demand proof that the school had actual knowledge of the bullying and responded with deliberate indifference.

Statute of Limitations for Children's Claims

Michigan's tolling statute under MCL § 600.5851 is critically important for children's rights cases: it pauses the statute of limitations until the child turns 18, then gives them one year (or the remaining limitations period, whichever is longer) to file. For childhood sexual abuse, the extended deadline under MCL § 600.5851b provides even more time. The general personal injury statute of limitations is three years under MCL § 600.5805(2), but governmental immunity notice requirements under MCL § 691.1404 still apply to claims against schools and government agencies — the 120-day notice deadline is not tolled for minors in many circumstances.

If your child has been harmed by an institution that was supposed to protect them, call Koussan Law at (313) 800-0000 for a free consultation. You can also use our free case calculator to get an immediate estimate of your child's claim.