People's Justice

Case guide

LDS abuse reports: was a report hidden?

A claim that a report was hidden needs its own evidence. The Church’s help-line statement is its position, not proof of how your report was handled.

See If You Qualify

Free · No obligation · About 2 minutes

Updated Oct 4, 202610 sources

This may apply to you if

  • Ask a lawyer about sexual abuse by a person linked to the LDS Church.
  • Explain the place, years and your age when the abuse happened.
  • Describe the person’s role and any reports or responses you remember.

What the public record says

These are cited sources. Their inclusion does not imply that they endorse People’s Justice or reviewed this page.

Karen K. Caldwell · United States Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation · Chair of the panel issuing the April 3, 2025 order

Finding: The panel denied the request to group the listed LDS abuse cases. It said individual reports of abuse and the responses to those reports would be important facts in each case.

Order Denying Transfer, LDS sexual abuse litigation, April 3, 2025 (opens in a new tab) · Apr 3, 2025 · Checked Oct 3, 2026

The evidence and its limits

United States Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation · 2025

What the LDS grouping order reviewed

Design:
Other study design
Participants:
Listed civil actions and their varied allegations; no enrolled patients.
Finding:
The panel refused the listed grouping request and said individual reports and responses would matter.
Main limitation
A court coordination review does not establish abuse, fault, a clinical diagnosis or current case status.

Read the source: What the LDS grouping order reviewed (opens in a new tab) · Checked Oct 3, 2026

The short answer

What does an alleged cover-up mean for my claim?
The listed LDS cases alleged a policy of hiding abuse. The panel did not decide that claim was true. Ask which facts support the claim you want checked. [1]
What does the Church say about its help line?
The Church says the line gives local leaders advice on reporting. That is the Church’s account. It does not show what happened to your report. [2]
Does the court order prove a cover-up?
No. The April 2025 order refused to group the listed cases. It said each report and response would matter. [1]
What should I preserve for a claim review?
Keep the reports and replies you hold. A civil case may involve requests for records. Ask a lawyer how to seek missing proof safely. [8]

What rules a case out

Not covered by this case

  • A policy, role or published allegation does not prove your claim.
  • No personal deadline, firm acceptance, payment or privacy guarantee is given.

The process

What happens next

  1. 01

    You answer a few questions

    About two minutes. Nothing is sent until you agree on the last step and press submit.

  2. 02

    A lawyer looks at it

    A lawyer at the firm reads your answers and checks them against the current case criteria.

  3. 03

    The firm decides and gets in touch

    If the firm takes your case, you get the terms in writing to read before you sign. You can always say no.

What does an alleged cover-up mean for my claim?

The listed LDS cases alleged a policy of hiding abuse. The panel did not decide that claim was true. Ask which facts support the claim you want checked.

Separate the abuse you remember from what you know about later reports. Note who received each report, when you made it and what response you recall. Mark anything learned from another person as such.

What does the Church say about its help line?

The Church says the line gives local leaders advice on reporting. That is the Church’s account. It does not show what happened to your report.

Keep a copy of any message or reply you already hold. If someone says the line was called, note who said that and when. Do not guess what was said on a call you did not hear.

Does the court order prove a cover-up?

No. The April 2025 order refused to group the listed cases. It said each report and response would matter.

Ask for the document behind a claim of a court finding. An allegation, an order about where cases proceed and a final ruling answer different questions. Use the exact document date in your notes.

What should I preserve for a claim review?

Keep the reports and replies you hold. A civil case may involve requests for records. Ask a lawyer how to seek missing proof safely.

Do not contact an alleged abuser or press another survivor for details. Ask about a safe way to describe the records you have. Before sharing a file, ask who will see it and how it will be used.

What should a lawyer review about the response?

Ask which report and reply support the claim of a hidden report. Keep your recollection separate from what someone else said.

What work would an agreement cover?

Ask if the firm would seek records about the response and what that costs. Read the scope before you agree to share more files.

Scientific evidence for this case

LDS Church Abuse · Journal of Interpersonal Violence · 2023Cross-sectional

Institutional Betrayal and Clergy Sexual Abuse: Impact on Disclosure, Reporting, and Psychological Outcomes

Survivors who experienced institutional betrayal (e.g., Church concealment of abuse, victim-blaming by leaders) had PTSD symptom severity scores 2.3x higher than survivors who did not experience institutional betrayal

LDS Church Abuse · Journal of Trauma and Dissociation · 2022Cross-sectional

Religious Institutional Abuse: Long-Term Psychological Outcomes in Adult Survivors

Clergy abuse survivors showed elevated complex PTSD rates (78%) compared to other sexual abuse survivors (45%)

LDS Church Abuse · Child Abuse & Neglect · 2018Cross-sectional

Mandated Reporter Compliance in Religious Institutions: A National Survey

41% of surveyed religious leaders were unaware of their mandatory reporting obligations in their state

Find out where you stand.

The review is free and private. Asking for it doesn’t commit you to anything.

Register your interest

Sources

  1. JPML: LDS sexual abuse order denying transfer, April 3, 2025www.jpml.uscourts.gov · court
  2. Church Newsroom: its help-line statement, August 5, 2022newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org
  3. Church guide: helping someone who has been abusedwww.churchofjesuschrist.org · study
  4. RAINN: National Sexual Assault Hotline contactrainn.org
  5. RAINN: what to expect from the hotlinerainn.org
  6. ABA Model Rule 1.5: fees and expenseswww.americanbar.org
  7. SDNY: filing time limits require legal researchnysd.uscourts.gov · court
  8. U.S. Courts: federal civil claims and evidencewww.uscourts.gov · court
  9. U.S. Courts: public access and privacy in federal fileswww.uscourts.gov · study
  10. U.S. District Judge Tena Campbell (D. Utah) granted summary judgment to insurers National Union and ACE, ruling they owed the LDS Church no duty to defend or indemnify for its mid-trial 2018 settlement of the Doe-1 (Michael Jensen) West Virginia child sexual abuse suit; church appealed to the 10th Circuit (No. 25-4049). Settlement amount is sealed in court records. On July 28, 2026, the Tenth Circuit reversed the grant of summary judgment to the insurers and remanded for further proceedings.fox13now.com · Apr 3, 2025

Checked against 5 primary sources by People's Justice editors · Updated

How we make money

People's Justice research team · Updated Oct 4, 2026