When the Place You Trusted to Keep Your Child Safe Becomes the Place That Hurt Them
You dropped your child off at preschool the way you do every morning. A kiss, a backpack, a wave from the classroom door. You trusted the people behind that door because you had to — that is what parents do. And then you saw the bruises. Or you got the call from a licensing investigator. Or your child said something that stopped your heart. The floor drops out, and the first question that comes through the shock is always the same: what do I do now.
We are writing this page because a preschool in Keelung City, Taiwan, had its license revoked in July 2025 after a government investigation found that multiple staff members committed child abuse against preschool-age children in their care. The person in charge of the preschool was fined a total of NT$840,000 (approximately US$26,220) for child abuse, for providing educare services without required qualifications, and — critically — for failing to report suspected child abuse as required by law. Four childcare workers and educators were permanently banned from working in early childhood education. Six suspects were released on bail and barred from leaving Taiwan pending a criminal investigation. Several children were found with bruises caused by abuse.
This specific case is governed by Taiwan’s laws, and any family affected by this preschool in Keelung should seek Taiwan-licensed counsel for civil claims under Taiwan’s civil code. A United States law firm cannot represent families in Taiwanese courts. If your family was affected by this specific preschool, we can help connect you with qualified attorneys in Taiwan who can pursue claims under Taiwan’s legal system.
But if you are reading this from the United States because something similar happened to your child at an American preschool, daycare, or childcare facility, the legal framework below is what protects your family — and the institutional patterns exposed by the Keelung case are the same patterns we see in childcare abuse cases across this country. Multiple abusers at one facility means a system failed, not just individuals. A leader who knew and did not report means the institution itself is accountable. Surveillance footage that proves what happened can disappear in weeks. The bruises fade. The clock runs.
This page is legal information, not legal advice. Every state’s laws differ. But the institutional patterns of childcare abuse are universal, and knowing them is the first thing that protects your child. For families navigating a child injury in the United States, our parents’ guide to child injury lawsuits walks through the practical steps in plain language.
What Happened in Keelung City: The Facts and What They Expose
The Keelung City government conducted a two-stage administrative investigation after several children were found with bruises allegedly caused by abuse at a local preschool. Here is what the investigation found, based on public reporting of the government’s announcements:
The person in charge of the preschool was fined NT$600,000 for child abuse, NT$150,000 for providing educare services without the required qualifications, NT$60,000 as the person in charge, and NT$30,000 for failing to report suspected child abuse as required by law — a total of NT$840,000. Two childcare workers were found to have committed serious child abuse, each fined NT$400,000 and permanently banned from working in early childhood education. Two additional educators were previously fined NT$400,000 each and permanently banned. Two more educators were fined NT$60,000 each for less serious incidents of child mistreatment. The preschool’s license was revoked. Prosecutors filed a criminal complaint and granted bail to six suspects, all barred from leaving Taiwan.
Here is what those facts expose — and why they matter to any family in any country:
Multiple abusers at one facility. When two, four, or six staff members at the same preschool are found to have abused children, that is not a coincidence and it is not “one bad apple.” It is a system that permitted, tolerated, or failed to detect a culture of harm. In the United States, this pattern is the backbone of institutional liability — it proves that the facility’s hiring, training, supervision, and monitoring systems were all broken at once.
A leader who failed to report. The person in charge was specifically fined for failing to report suspected child abuse as required by law. In the United States, every state has mandatory reporter laws that require designated professionals — including childcare workers and facility operators — to report suspected child abuse to authorities. When a preschool leader knows or suspects abuse and does not report it, that failure is its own separate wrong, independent of the abuse itself.
Unqualified staff. The person in charge was fined for providing educare services without the required qualifications. In the United States, state licensing requirements set minimum qualifications for childcare workers. Hiring unqualified staff is not just a regulatory violation — it is evidence of negligent hiring that can support a civil claim when that unqualified person harms a child.
Surveillance footage as central evidence. The Keelung City government conducted a comprehensive review of surveillance footage before revoking the preschool’s license. That footage proved who committed abuse, when, and over what duration. In the United States, the same footage is often the single most decisive piece of evidence in a childcare abuse case — and it is typically overwritten within 7 to 30 days unless someone demands it be preserved.
Visible injuries on multiple children. Several children were found with bruises. Bruising is the visible evidence of abuse, but it fades within days to weeks. Pediatric forensic documentation — photographs, measurements, location mapping, and age-dating of each bruise — must be obtained promptly before the evidence disappears.
Your Legal Rights When a Preschool or Daycare Fails Your Child
If your child was abused at a preschool, daycare, or childcare facility in the United States, the law gives your family several distinct paths to accountability. Each path targets a different failure, and a thorough case uses all of them together.
The Heightened Duty of Care
A preschool or daycare is not an ordinary business. When you hand your child to a childcare facility, that facility stands in the place of a parent — a legal doctrine called in loco parentis. The facility holds itself out as qualified to protect, supervise, and care for children who cannot protect themselves. The law holds childcare facilities to a heightened duty of care that is stricter than the ordinary reasonable-care standard applied to most businesses, because the people in their care are the most vulnerable members of society — small children who cannot report, cannot resist, and cannot leave.
That heightened duty means the facility must do more than merely react to dangers. It must actively prevent them: by screening staff before hiring, by maintaining adequate staff-to-child ratios, by training staff to recognize and report abuse, by designing the physical space so that children are never alone with a single adult in an unmonitored area, by maintaining working surveillance cameras, by enforcing check-in and check-out procedures, and by responding immediately to any sign that a child has been harmed.
Negligent Supervision
When multiple staff members at the same facility abuse children, the facility is liable for negligent supervision — the failure to adequately oversee its own employees. The question is not just whether the abuser did something wrong. It is whether the facility’s supervision was so thin, so absent, or so broken that abuse could happen repeatedly, to multiple children, by multiple staff, without anyone in charge noticing or stopping it.
In the Keelung case, the fact that four staff members were permanently banned for serious abuse — plus two more fined for lesser mistreatment — is powerful evidence that supervision was not just inadequate on one day. It was systemically absent over an extended period. That same pattern, proven in a United States case, converts a claim from “one employee’s bad act” to “the institution’s failure.”
Negligent Hiring and Retention
The Keelung case exposed that the person in charge was providing educare services without required qualifications. In the United States, state licensing regulations set minimum qualification standards for childcare workers, and facilities are required to conduct background checks before hiring. A facility that hires staff without checking qualifications, without conducting criminal background checks, or without verifying references is liable for negligent hiring when that staff member harms a child.
Negligent retention is the parallel claim when a facility learns — or should have learned — that an employee poses a danger to children and keeps that employee anyway. Prior complaints from parents, prior incidents of inappropriate behavior, prior disciplinary actions — all of these are warning signs that the facility had a legal duty to act on.
The Mandatory Reporter Failure: A Wrong of Its Own
Every state in the United States has a mandatory reporter law that requires certain professionals to report suspected child abuse to authorities. Childcare workers, teachers, and facility operators are mandatory reporters in virtually every state. The reporting window is typically immediate — within 24 to 48 hours of suspecting abuse, depending on the state.
Taiwan’s mandatory child abuse reporting law requires designated professionals to report suspected abuse; violation is both an administrative offense and potential criminal liability.
That same principle exists in every American state. When a preschool director, principal, or person in charge knows or suspects that a child has been abused and fails to report it, that failure is:
- A crime — most states make failure to report a misdemeanor, and some elevate it to a felony when the abuse is serious
- A regulatory violation — state licensing authorities can fine, sanction, or revoke licenses for reporting failures
- Evidence of negligence per se — in many states, violating a statute designed to protect a class of people (children) is admissible as evidence that the defendant was negligent, and in some states it creates a presumption of negligence
- An independent basis of civil liability — the failure to report is a separate wrong from the abuse itself, and it can expose the facility to separate damages
In the Keelung case, the NT$30,000 fine for failing to report suspected child abuse was the administrative penalty. In the United States, that same failure can become a civil claim that adds to the facility’s total liability — and it can support punitive damages because it demonstrates conscious disregard for the child’s safety.
Premises Liability and Inadequate Safety Protocols
A childcare facility is responsible for the physical safety of its premises. This includes:
- Working surveillance cameras in all areas where children are cared for
- No blind spots where children can be alone with a single adult unobserved
- Secure access control (locked doors, check-in procedures, visitor logging)
- Adequate lighting and visibility in classrooms, hallways, and play areas
- Design and layout that permits continuous adult supervision of all children
When a facility’s physical design or safety protocols make abuse possible — a blind corner, an unmonitored room, a broken camera, an unlocked door — the facility is liable under premises liability for creating the conditions that allowed harm to occur.
Who Can Be Held Accountable
In a childcare abuse case, the liable parties extend beyond the individual abuser. Identifying every layer is what separates a case that fully compensates a family from one that under-recovery.
The individual abuser. The staff member who physically abused the child faces criminal prosecution and civil liability. In the United States, intentional torts like battery and assault are not covered by most insurance policies, so the individual abuser’s personal assets may be the only source of recovery on this claim. In practice, the individual abuser is named but the real recovery comes from the institutional defendants.
The operating entity. The preschool or daycare business — the LLC, corporation, or partnership that holds the license and employs the staff — is the primary defendant. This entity is liable for negligent hiring, negligent supervision, negligent retention, and premises liability. Its insurance coverage (Commercial General Liability and possibly abuse-specific coverage) is the first source of recovery.
The facility’s leadership. The director, principal, owner, or person in charge who failed to supervise, failed to report, or knowingly allowed dangerous conditions is personally liable in many states. In the Keelung case, the person in charge was individually fined — in the United States, that person can be individually sued.
The parent corporation or franchise. If the daycare is part of a chain or franchise system, the parent corporation or franchisor may be liable if it exercised control over the facility’s operations, set staffing policies, or failed to enforce safety standards at its branded locations.
The insurer. The facility’s insurance carrier is the entity that ultimately pays most civil claims. Insurance coverage for child abuse is heavily contested — many policies contain abuse and molestation exclusions — and the coverage fight is often as important as the liability fight.
Evidence That Disappears: The Clock on Your Proof
The single most urgent issue in any childcare abuse case is that the evidence disappears faster than most families realize. Every day you wait, proof is being legally erased.
Surveillance Footage: 7 to 30 Days
Preschool and daycare surveillance systems typically overwrite on a rolling cycle of 7 to 30 days. The footage that shows who was in the room, what happened, and how long it went on is the same footage that the Keelung City government reviewed before revoking the preschool’s license. In the United States, that footage is usually gone within a month unless someone sends a written preservation demand ordering the facility to save it. The day you suspect abuse is the day that demand needs to go out — not the day you hire a lawyer three months later.
Bruising and Medical Evidence: Days to Weeks
Bruises fade. A bruise that is clearly visible today may be undetectable in two weeks. Pediatric forensic documentation — performed by a medical professional trained in child abuse evaluation — photographs, measures, maps, and age-dates each injury. This documentation establishes the pattern, location, and timing of abuse. It differentiates inflicted injury from accidental injury. And it must be done while the evidence is still on the child’s body.
Pediatric forensic documentation must be obtained promptly. If you see bruises on your child, take your child to a pediatrician or emergency room immediately and request a forensic evaluation. Photograph the injuries yourself with a ruler in the frame for scale. Document the date, time, and location of every mark.
Administrative Investigation Files
When a state licensing authority investigates a daycare — as the Keelung City government did through its two-stage review committee — it produces a formal record: findings of fact, citations, penalty orders, and the underlying investigation file. In the United States, state licensing investigation records are public or obtainable through public records requests, and they can be powerful evidence in a civil case. A formal government finding that a facility committed serious violations involving multiple staff members is not just a regulatory action — it is admissible evidence that supports civil liability.
Staff Employment Files and Qualification Records
The Keelung case exposed that the person in charge was providing educare services without required qualifications. In the United States, staff personnel files, background check records, qualification documents, training records, and disciplinary histories are all discoverable in litigation. These records show whether the facility checked qualifications, whether it conducted required background checks, whether prior complaints were made and ignored, and whether the facility retained staff it knew or should have known were dangerous.
Internal Incident Reports and Parent Communications
Many facilities generate internal incident reports when a child is injured. These reports — and prior parent complaints, staff meeting notes, and internal communications — can reveal whether the facility had notice of prior problems. In the Keelung case, public criticism that initial penalties were too lenient led to a more thorough second-stage investigation. In the United States, your lawyer’s discovery requests are what force the facility to produce these internal records.
The Medicine of Child Abuse: What the Harm Looks Like
Child abuse in a preschool setting produces two categories of harm: the physical injuries that are visible and the psychological injuries that often are not. Both are real, both are compensable, and both require specific medical evidence to prove.
Physical Injuries
The Keelung case involved children found with bruises. Bruising in preschool-age children is significant evidence because non-mobile infants rarely bruise accidentally — a medical principle known as “those who don’t cruise rarely bruise.” In a preschool-age child, the location, pattern, and number of bruises tell a forensic story:
- Bruises on the back of the legs, buttocks, ears, neck, or torso are more consistent with inflicted injury than accidental
- Pattern bruising — hand prints, belt marks, object imprints — directly identifies the mechanism of harm
- Bruises at different stages of healing (different colors: red, purple, green, yellow) indicate repeated abuse over time, not a single incident
- Bite marks can be forensically matched to an abuser
A pediatric forensic examination documents all of this. The examination should include full-body photography, measurement and mapping of each injury, and a written report by a physician trained in child abuse pediatrics. This report is the medical evidence that proves the physical harm in a civil case.
Psychological Trauma
The psychological harm of child abuse at a preschool — where the child was supposed to be safe, cared for, and protected — is often the deepest and longest-lasting injury. The child was betrayed by adults they were told to trust, in a place their parents told them was safe.
Post-traumatic stress disorder in children is a formal medical diagnosis with specific criteria. A child may be diagnosed with PTSD if they were exposed to a traumatic event (the abuse) and then develop persistent symptoms across multiple categories:
- Intrusion symptoms: nightmares about the preschool, flashbacks, distress when reminded of the facility or staff, reenactment of the abuse in play
- Avoidance: refusal to return to any daycare, fear of separation from parents, avoidance of people who resemble the abuser
- Negative changes in cognition and mood: blaming themselves, fear of adults, loss of trust, withdrawal, regression (bedwetting, thumb-sucking, loss of language skills)
- Changes in arousal and reactivity: hypervigilance, exaggerated startle response, irritability, aggression, sleep disturbances, difficulty concentrating
These symptoms must last more than one month and cause functional impairment to meet the diagnostic threshold. But even symptoms that do not meet the full PTSD criteria — adjustment disorders, anxiety, depression, attachment disruption — are real, diagnosable, and compensable injuries.
The Proof Problem the Defense Exploits
The defense in a childcare abuse case will try to minimize the psychological harm. “The child seems fine.” “Bruises heal.” “Kids are resilient.” These are the same arguments used in every invisible-injury case, and they fail for the same reason: the medicine contradicts them.
Psychological harm in children is proven through contemporaneous mental health records — the first therapy intake, the treating therapist’s notes, standardized assessment instruments, and the observations of parents and teachers. The closer these records are to the time of abuse, the more powerful they are, because they pre-date any “litigation motive” the defense can allege.
A child who was abused at preschool may need years of trauma-focused therapy — typically trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy (TF-CBT), play therapy for younger children, and family therapy to help parents support the child’s recovery. The cost of this treatment is a recoverable damage. So is the child’s pain and suffering, the loss of their sense of safety, and the developmental impact of having their trust shattered at an age when they were supposed to be learning that the world is safe.
What the Institution and Its Insurer Will Do
When a preschool or daycare faces an abuse claim, the facility and its insurance company follow a predictable playbook. Knowing the plays before they run is what protects your family from being outmaneuvered.
Play 1: “An Isolated Incident by One Bad Employee”
The facility will try to frame the abuse as a single employee’s unexpected act — an aberration that no one could have predicted. This isolates the liability at the individual level, where insurance coverage is weakest.
The counter: When multiple staff members abused children at the same facility — as in the Keelung case, where four were permanently banned — the “isolated incident” defense collapses. Multiple abusers prove a systemic failure of hiring, supervision, training, and monitoring. The institution itself is the wrongdoer, not just the individuals.
Play 2: The Quick Settlement with a Release
The insurer may offer a fast check — sometimes within weeks — with a release attached that waives all future claims. The check arrives before the full scope of your child’s psychological harm is known, before the medical evaluation is complete, and before the administrative investigation findings are available.
The counter: A child’s psychological harm may not fully manifest for months. Early settlements are designed to close the case before the real cost of treatment is known. Never sign a release from a daycare’s insurer without speaking to a lawyer first. A release is final — once signed, you cannot go back even if your child needs years of therapy.
Play 3: “The Injuries Are Minor — Just Bruises”
The defense will point to the physical injuries and minimize them. “Bruises heal in two weeks.” “No broken bones.” “No permanent physical damage.”
The counter: Bruises are the visible evidence of abuse, not the full measure of the harm. The psychological injury — the PTSD, the anxiety, the shattered trust, the regression, the years of therapy — is the real damage, and it is invisible on an X-ray. The medicine proves it. The treating therapist documents it. The standardized assessment instruments measure it. And a jury that hears a child’s therapist describe nightmares about the preschool understands that bruises are the beginning of the harm, not the end.
Play 4: Denying Insurance Coverage
Many commercial general liability policies contain abuse and molestation exclusions that purport to bar coverage for claims arising from child abuse. The insurer’s first move may be a coverage denial — a letter stating that the policy does not cover what happened.
The counter: Coverage for childcare abuse claims is heavily contested and depends on how the claim is framed. A claim for negligent supervision, negligent hiring, and negligent retention may access coverage even when a claim for intentional abuse does not. The coverage fight is its own battle, and it is one of the first things a qualified lawyer evaluates. The facility’s own assets — not just its insurance — are also a source of recovery when coverage is denied.
Play 5: Surveillance Footage “Unavailability”
When a preservation demand arrives too late, the facility reports that the footage has been overwritten. “The system cycles every 14 days. The footage from that date no longer exists.”
The counter: A preservation demand sent within days freezes the footage and creates a spoliation argument if it is destroyed after notice. When footage is destroyed after a written preservation demand, a court can instruct the jury to presume the lost footage would have supported the child’s case. The urgency of sending the demand immediately is not theoretical — it is the difference between having the evidence and having an adverse inference.
How a Case Is Built
A childcare abuse case is built in stages, and each stage depends on the one before it.
Week one: preservation. The day a family contacts us, the first document we send is a preservation and spoliation letter to the facility, its insurer, and any corporate parent. That letter orders them to freeze surveillance footage, staff personnel files, internal incident reports, parent complaint records, scheduling and ratio records, training records, and licensing inspection files. It puts the facility on notice that evidence destruction will have legal consequences. This letter goes out before any lawsuit is filed, before any demand is made, and before any negotiation begins — because the evidence is dying every day.
Weeks two through four: medical documentation. We help the family obtain a complete pediatric forensic examination if one has not already been done. We ensure that every injury is photographed, measured, mapped, and documented by a qualified medical professional. We connect the family with a child psychologist or therapist for a trauma evaluation — because the contemporaneous mental health record is what defeats the “the child seems fine” defense.
Months one through three: records demands. We demand the facility’s licensing inspection history from the state regulatory authority. We request the administrative investigation file. We subpoena staff personnel files, background check records, training records, and prior complaint histories. We pull the facility’s safety policies, surveillance system specifications, and staff scheduling records. These records establish what the facility knew, when it knew it, and what it failed to do.
Months three through six: expert evaluation. A child abuse pediatrician reviews the medical evidence and opines on whether the injuries are consistent with inflicted trauma. A child psychologist evaluates the child and documents the psychological harm. A daycare operations expert reviews the facility’s staffing ratios, supervision practices, and safety protocols and opines on how the abuse was allowed to occur. These experts convert the evidence into testimony a jury can understand.
Months six through twelve: depositions and discovery. The facility’s director, the staff members, and corporate representatives answer questions under oath. The depositions establish who knew what, when they knew it, what they did about it, and what they failed to do. The deposition of a daycare director who cannot explain why four staff members were abusing children without being detected is the deposition that settles the case.
The number at the end. The settlement demand or trial presentation is built from all of it — the medical costs, the therapy costs (past and future), the pain and suffering, the emotional distress, the child’s lost sense of safety, the facility’s conscious disregard for the children in its care, and the punitive damages that a jury may impose to punish and deter. Every dollar is tied to a specific piece of evidence and a specific expert opinion.
What Your Case May Be Worth
Childcare abuse cases in the United States can range significantly in value depending on the severity of the harm, the number of children affected, the facility’s insurance coverage and assets, the strength of the institutional liability evidence, and the state’s damage rules.
Economic damages — the money you can count on receipts — include:
– Medical evaluation and treatment costs (pediatric forensic exam, emergency care, follow-up visits)
– Psychological evaluation and ongoing therapy (trauma-focused CBT, play therapy, family therapy — potentially for years)
– Future medical and psychological treatment projected by a life-care plan
– Any special educational needs resulting from the trauma
Non-economic damages — the human losses no receipt can measure — include:
– The child’s pain and suffering
– Emotional distress and psychological harm
– Loss of the child’s sense of safety and trust
– The impact on the parent-child relationship
– Loss of enjoyment of childhood
Punitive damages — available in many states when the defendant’s conduct was intentional, reckless, or demonstrated conscious disregard for the child’s safety — may be recoverable against both the individual abuser and the institution that knowingly allowed the abuse to continue. A facility that ignored prior complaints, failed to report suspected abuse, or retained staff it knew were dangerous is a candidate for punitive damages. Punitive damage availability and limits vary significantly by state.
We will not promise you a number on this page. Every case’s value depends on its specific facts, the strength of the evidence, the applicable state law, and the available insurance and assets. What we can tell you is that the insurance industry’s first offer is almost always a fraction of what a fully developed case is worth — which is why building the evidence first, before any demand, is what determines the outcome.
Past results depend on the facts of each case and do not guarantee future outcomes.
The First 72 Hours: What Families Should Do
If you have just learned that your child may have been abused at a preschool or daycare, the first 72 hours are when evidence is preserved or lost. Here is what to do, in order.
1. Get your child medical care. Take your child to a pediatrician or emergency room and tell them you suspect abuse. Request a forensic pediatric evaluation. Do not wait — bruising fades, and the forensic documentation must be done while the evidence is on your child’s body. Photograph every injury yourself, with a ruler in the frame for scale, and note the date and time.
2. Report to the authorities. In the United States, every state has a child protective services hotline. You can also call the police. If your child told you about the abuse, write down exactly what your child said, in their words, as soon as possible. This contemporaneous record is evidence.
3. Do not confront the facility yet. Do not go to the preschool and demand answers. Do not sign anything. Do not accept any check. Do not give a recorded statement to the facility’s insurer. Anything you say to the facility or its insurer can be used against your child’s case.
4. Preserve everything. Save every communication from the preschool — emails, letters, handouts, photos, text messages. Write down the names of every staff member you know. Save your child’s clothing from the day you noticed injuries (do not wash it). Document any behavioral changes in your child — nightmares, regression, fear, withdrawal — with dates and specific observations.
5. Contact a lawyer. The preservation letter to the facility — the one that freezes the surveillance footage before it overwrites — needs to go out within days. The records demands need to go out before the facility winds down its operations or transfers files. The medical evaluation needs to happen while the bruises are still visible. Contact us as soon as possible — the consultation is free, and the preservation work begins the day you call.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I sue the preschool if my child was abused there?
Yes. In the United States, a preschool or daycare is legally responsible for the safety of the children in its care. When a staff member abuses a child, the facility is liable for negligent hiring, negligent supervision, and negligent retention — separate from the individual abuser’s own liability. When multiple staff members abuse children, the institutional liability is even stronger because it proves a systemic failure, not an isolated incident.
What if the preschool’s license was already revoked?
License revocation is powerful evidence in a civil case. A formal government finding that a preschool committed serious violations involving multiple staff members is admissible in a civil lawsuit and supports the claim that the facility failed to meet its duty of care. However, the administrative penalty (license revocation, fines, employment bans) does not compensate your family — it punishes the facility. You still need a separate civil claim to recover damages for your child’s medical care, therapy, pain and suffering, and long-term harm.
How long do I have to file a lawsuit?
The deadline to file a personal injury lawsuit varies by state — typically between one and six years, with two years being common in many states. However, most states toll the statute of limitations for minors, meaning the clock does not start running until the child reaches age 18 (and in some states, later). Some states have special extended deadlines for child abuse cases. The discovery rule — which starts the clock when the harm was discovered rather than when the abuse occurred — may also apply.
But the statute of limitations is not the deadline that should worry you. The evidence deadline is. Surveillance footage overwrites in 7 to 30 days. Bruising fades in days to weeks. Staff scatter when a facility closes. The deadline that matters is the one on the evidence, and that deadline is measured in days, not years.
What if the daycare’s insurance company already offered me a settlement?
Be extremely careful. Insurance companies offer quick settlements to close cases before the full scope of harm is known. A child’s psychological injuries may not fully manifest for months after the abuse. A settlement that seems adequate today may not cover years of therapy. Once you sign a release, you cannot go back — even if your child needs treatment the settlement does not cover. Never accept a settlement from a daycare’s insurer without speaking to a lawyer first.
Can the preschool’s director be personally liable?
In many states, yes. A facility director, principal, or person in charge who failed to supervise staff, failed to report suspected abuse, or knowingly allowed dangerous conditions can be personally liable alongside the facility. In the Keelung case, the person in charge was individually fined for failing to report abuse and for providing services without qualifications. In the United States, that same individual can be individually sued for the harms those failures caused.
What if the abuse was committed by one staff member, not multiple?
A single abuser can still establish institutional liability if the facility failed to conduct adequate background checks, failed to supervise the employee, failed to respond to prior warning signs, or failed to maintain a physical environment that prevented unsupervised access to children. The question is not just what the abuser did — it is what the facility failed to do that allowed the abuser the opportunity.
Will my child have to testify?
In most states, special protections exist for child witnesses. A young child may not need to testify in open court. Many jurisdictions allow closed-circuit television testimony, recorded depositions, or other accommodations that protect the child from the trauma of facing the abuser in a courtroom. The decision about whether a child testifies depends on the child’s age, the specific state’s procedures, and the strategic judgment of the lawyer handling the case.
What if my child seems fine now?
Children process trauma differently than adults, and the full impact of abuse may not appear for months or even years. A child who “seems fine” in the weeks after abuse may develop nightmares, anxiety, regression, or behavioral problems later. A trauma evaluation by a qualified child psychologist can identify harm that is not yet visible to a parent. Even if your child is not currently showing symptoms, documenting the exposure and obtaining a baseline evaluation is important for both their wellbeing and any legal claim.
What does it cost to hire a lawyer for a child abuse case?
Our firm works on contingency. We do not get paid unless we win your case. The consultation is free. If we take your case, the fee is 33.33% of the recovery before trial and 40% if the case goes to trial. You do not pay anything out of pocket to get started. The preservation letter, the records demands, the expert evaluations — all of that work happens before any fee is earned, and it is funded by the firm.
Why This Firm
When a preschool fails your child, the institution that hurt them has lawyers, insurance adjusters, and a playbook designed to minimize what they owe you. You need someone on your side who knows that playbook from the inside.
Ralph Manginello has spent 27+ years in courtrooms, including federal court, as the managing partner of our firm. He was a journalist before he was a lawyer — he knows how to find the story the institution does not want told. He handles catastrophic injury and wrongful death cases, and the institutional accountability fight when a business harms the people it was supposed to protect is exactly the kind of case he has built his career on.
Lupe Peña spent years inside a national insurance-defense firm — the rooms where adjusters and their software decided how to deny, delay, and devalue people exactly like the families who call us. He knows how claims are valued from the inside, how recorded statements are engineered, how the quick settlement check is designed to arrive before the medical results, and how the coverage denial is timed. He now uses that knowledge for injured clients. He is fluent in Spanish and conducts full consultations in Spanish without an interpreter.
Our firm has recovered more than $50 million in aggregate for injured clients. We have a 4.9-star rating from more than 251 Google reviews. We have been in business since July 18, 2001 — more than 24 years. We answer our phone 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, with live staff, not an answering service.
This page is legal information, not legal advice. Every state’s laws differ, and every case turns on its own facts. If your child was harmed at a preschool, daycare, or childcare facility in the United States, call us at 1-888-ATTY-911 for a free consultation. We will listen to what happened, tell you honestly whether we can help, and if we can, the preservation work begins the day you call. If your family was affected by the preschool in Keelung City, Taiwan, we can help connect you with qualified Taiwan-licensed counsel — call us and we will assist with the referral.
We don’t get paid unless we win your case.
Hablamos Español. Lupe conducts full consultations in Spanish without an interpreter. If your family prefers to communicate in Spanish, we serve you fully in your language.
Call 1-888-ATTY-911. Free consultation. 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
The parents’ guide to child injury lawsuits on our video library walks through what families need to know in plain language. Our practice areas cover the full range of child injury and institutional accountability cases we handle.