Herzfeld v. Herzfeld
Supreme Court of Florida
781 So.2d 1070 (Fla. 2001)
Relevant factsFree
Frank Herzfeld (plaintiff) claimed he was sexually abused as a child by his adoptive father, Gary Herzfeld (defendant), and brought a civil suit against Gary for the intentional tort of sexual abuse. Gary moved to dismiss based on the parental-immunity doctrine, and the trial court granted the motion; the appellate court reversed, finding public policy did not support applying parental immunity in this context, and Gary appealed.
IssueFree
Whether the parental-immunity doctrine, which generally shields parents from certain suits by their children, applies to bar a child's civil claim for sexual abuse committed by a parent.