Can You Sue If Someone Gives You Herpes

Sexual Assault/negligent Transmission Of Std Lawsuits

In 2017, the Center for Disease Control ranked Georgia in the top five states in the U.S. for sexually-transmitted diseases. This may not be a proud moment for Georgia, but it should be an eye-opener that these diseases are prevalent in our state. Many STDs are treatable, or at least containable. Those with STDs have a responsibility to protect others from exposure. If they knowingly expose another person to an STD, they may face criminal charges for sexual assault and civil action with a negligent transmission of STD lawsuit.

Herpes, HIV, hepatitis and other serious STDs can alter your life. Not only are there health concerns, STDs can impact the ability to have children and personal relationships. Some STDs are not curable, meaning those with the disease may need to live with the side effects and stigma for the rest of their life. When a person exposes you to an STD knowingly or on purpose, you may have grounds for a civil lawsuit for emotional, physical and financial damages.

Its Illegal To Knowingly Try To Harm Another Person

When adults engage in consensual sex, its rarely the governments concern. However, things can get complicated when one of those consenting adults fails to tell the other that they have a disease that could be transmitted when they have sex. In Ohio, this could be considered a crime under the states assault laws.

Assault, as defined under Ohio Rev. Code Section 2903.13, occurs when a person knowingly causes or attempts to cause physical harm to another.

Could this apply to the act of having unprotected sex when you have herpes or another STD? Yes. However, you would have to:

• Know that you have a sexually-transmitted disease, and
• Engage in sex without warning or telling your partner.

Does knowingly mean that you intentionally tried to give someone else herpes? Not necessarily. Knowingly means that you knew that you could transmit the disease and cause harm, but had sex without disclosing that risk, anyway.

Does it matter whether or not your partner contracts an STD after you have sex? No. Assault involves causing physical harm or attempting to cause physical harm. The act of having unprotected sex and failing to disclose the possibility of transmitting an STD could be enough to be considered an attempt to cause physical harm.

Can I Sue Someone For Giving Me Herpes

You can sue someone for giving you herpes. The legal mechanism for this would be to bring a personal injury lawsuit. If the transmission came from nonconsensual sex, it can be a civil battery. It can be a negligence claim if the infected person lied about having an STD or should have known about the infection but did not use due care to avoid transmitting it.

All of these lawsuits would seek financial compensation. The compensation would be to cover the losses associated with the victims disease such as medical bills, lost wages and pain and suffering. A lawsuit can also hold the person who infected you accountable for his or her actions.

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Are You Legally Required To Tell Someone You Have Herpes In Florida

Mark Roman | February 21, 2022 | Florida LAw

You may be legally required to tell someone you have herpes under Florida law. However, your legal obligation to tell another person you have herpes depends on several specific factors.

The consequences of failing to inform a partner that you have herpes include potential criminal charges and a civil lawsuit for damages.

Consult A Personal Injury Attorney

Determining the answer to the question of whether you can sue someone for giving you an STD can be tricky. As mentioned before, symptoms can sometimes take a while to become apparent. Additionally, proving intentionality or negligence by your partner can be difficult to establish.

A personal injury attorney will help evaluate the strength of your case and provide you with the best legal options. Theyll be able to assess the evidence available such as medical records, testimonies, and more. Based on this assessment, an attorney can help you better understand the path towards suing someone for an STD. An experienced attorney will guide you through the legal proceedings and represent your best interests while maintaining a caring and compassionate approach during this sensitive time.

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Consequences Of Willfully Infecting Another Person With An Std

Willfully infecting another person with an STD is a misdemeanor offense in California.

• Jail Time: Penalties can range from a maximum of 90 days in jail to a maximum of six months in jail, depending on the seriousness of the situation.
• Fines: If convicted, you may also be required to pay criminal fines of up to $1,000.
• Probation: A judge may order you to serve a term of supervised release or probation after a finding of guilt.

If you knowingly or recklessly infect another person with an STD you may also be subject to civil consequences, as well.

Contact An Austin Tx Personal Injury Lawyer Today

You are the only person in charge of your own body and as such, you need to protect yourself. You likely would not have agreed to have sex with your partner if you knew he or she had an STD.

While you cannot turn back time, you can hold your partner liable for the damages he or she caused. Dealing with an STD, particularly an incurable one, is no laughing matter. The Austin, TX personal injury lawyers at Scott M. Brown & Associates can help you prove negligence and obtain the compensation you deserve. To schedule a consultation, call us at 612-7994 or fill out the online form.

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Is Infecting You With A Transmitted Disease A Crime

Most states have laws that make it a crime to infect someone with an STD. For example, under Florida law, It is unlawful for any person who has chancroid, gonorrhea, granuloma inguinale, lymphogranuloma venereum, genital herpes simplex, chlamydia, nongonococcal urethritis , pelvic inflammatory disease /acute salpingitis, human immunodeficiency virus infection, or syphilis, when such person knows he or she is infected with one or more of these diseases and when such person has been informed that he or she may communicate this disease to another person through sexual intercourse, to have sexual intercourse with any other person, unless such other person has been informed of the presence of the sexually transmissible disease and has consented to the sexual intercourse.

Essentially, if you know you have an STD and have sex with someone, you can be charged with the crime. It depends on whether or not you tell that person that you have the disease. If a person is convicted of this offense, this information can be used in a civil case.

If someone infects you with an STD and is charged with a crime, your personal injury lawyer will be able to submit evidence of these charges. It is proof that the defendant knew what he was doing. It can be used to help in your civil lawsuit. So, if your partner cheats and gets an STD, whether or not he will be held liable will depend on whether he knew he was infected.

Florida Laws Regarding Unlawful Sexual Intercourse With Std

Florida Statute §384.24 states that it is unlawful for someone who has genital herpes simplex to have sexual intercourse with another person if:

• The infected person knows they have the disease
• The infected person was informed that they could transfer the disease to another person through sexual intercourse and
• The other person was not informed of the STD and did not consent to sexual intercourse after being told of the STD.

The other person does not need to contract herpes for an infected person to be guilty of the crime. If the infected person knowingly had sexual intercourse without obtaining informed consent, they could be charged with a first-degree misdemeanor. The punishment may include up to a $1,000 fine and one year in jail.

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How Can I Defend Myself If Im Arrested For Giving Someone An Std

The state has to prove that youre guilty of a crime. You have the right to defend yourself. A strong defense will make the prosecutors job much more difficult. Defenses that might be appropriate include:

• You didnt know that you had an STD
• You disclosed the fact that you had an STD to your partner
• You didnt engage in any sexual conduct
• Youve been falsely accused.

You can also argue to have evidence in your case excluded if your rights have been violated. Working with an experienced criminal defense lawyer can help you get the best result.

To learn more, call our Dayton criminal defense law firm at or visit our contact us page to send us an email.

If A Sexual Partner Had Knowledge Of His/her Std And Infected You He Or She May Be Liable For Damages In A Civil Lawsuit

By David Goguen, J.D.

If you have been infected with a sexually transmitted disease ,you may be able to file a civil lawsuit against the sexual partner whoinfected you. And in rare cases, even if you were not actually infected,you still may be able to hold the other person liable for the emotionaltrauma caused by the threat of exposure.

There are a number of different legal theories that you may be able to rely on in bringing a civil lawsuit for STD infection.The right legal theory will depend on the circumstances of yoursituation, but two of the most common theories are negligence and civilbattery.

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Std Laws You Should Know About

By Erin Danly

Getting or transmitting a sexually transmitted disease is not only a health matter it could be a legal matter, too. Though laws vary greatly from state to state, most states have laws regarding the disclosure of health status, the transmission of STDs, and the handling of confidential medical information. Read on to find out more.

Compared to a civil case, a successful criminal case requires more substantial evidence. In many states, punishments include jail time and high fines.

While criminal charges are usually concerned with punishing wrongdoing, civil charges are often focused on providing just compensation to someone who has been wronged. And that compensation can be big. An Oregon woman sued a former sexual partner for giving her herpes and won $900,000. In the civil suit, her partner was found 75 percent negligent and was found to have committed battery.

Related: Can you get sued for an STD?

Another woman sued her former partner for giving her HPV that led to genital warts and cervical dysplasia, a precancerous condition. She won and was awarded $1.5 million. And thats just peanuts compared to the supposed $52 million settlement a woman received after she claimed that her former partner, the boss of the real-life Wolf of Wall Street, gave her chlamydia that made her infertile.

Can You Sue For Getting Herpes

Itâs pretty much the last thing youâd want to hear: you have herpes. But how? What happened? When? And, most importantly, who gave it to you?

According to the Centers for Disease Control, around one in six people between the ages of 14 and 49 have genital herpes, most of whom have no outwards symptoms of the disease. So did the person you contracted herpes from even know they were infected? And could that matter in a lawsuit?

Accidents

Even if a sexual partner didnât know he or she was infected with herpes at the time they gave it to you, you may still have a case for negligence. Negligence claims are premised on the fact that a person owed you of duty of care, breached that duty, and that you were injured as a result.

Courts have often recognized that sexual partners have a duty not to spread infection carelessly. If a former sexual partner knew or should have known he or she might have herpes, the failure to obtain diagnosis and/or treatment, the failure to inform you, and the failure to prevent transmission through abstention or use of prophylactics can amount to a lack of due care, making the person liable for negligence.

Lies

If a sexual partner lied to you about their STD status, you may also have a claim for fraud or misrepresentation. Fraud claims have three main elements:

Assault

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Reasons To File A Lawsuit Against Someone For Giving You Herpes

If you have contracted herpes, you can sue the person that gave it to you. Most states have laws against spreading herpes, and infected people are expected to take precautions against the further spread of the disease.

This includes using protection, taking medication to limit the infectious period, and, most importantly, telling anyone of the risk before engaging in sexual acts that could spread herpes. Here are the main reasons that people decide to sue someone for giving them herpes.

What You Can Do

If you have been infected with a sexually-transmitted infection causing long-term or permanent injuries, and believe it was done by someone who had knowledge they were infected, you may have a legal claim to recover for your injuries. Please contact our office. We will provide a confidential consultation to discuss your situation, your health, your long-term options and whether a civil lawsuit would be appropriate for you. Our qualified attorneys will evaluate your case and explain your rights and options. We value the privacy and interests of our clients and promise to treat you with the utmost care, attention and respect. Please contact us to learn more about your legal rights.

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How Can You Defend Against Charges For Intentionally Transmitting An Std

If you are charged with willfully transmitting an STD you have the right to defend yourself. There are two primary defenses that may be helpful: knowledge and intent.

Knowledge: You cannot be convicted of willfully transmitting an STD if you were not aware that you had a disease or infection. Some STDs can remain dormant and have few noticeable symptoms. Unless you submit to frequent STD testing, you may not know that you are afflicted.

Intent: California law states that a person can only be guilty of willfully transmitting a disease if they acted with the intent to infect another person and engaged in conduct that was substantially likely to infect them. If you warned your partner about your STD or took certain precautions to minimize the risk of transmission , you may avoid criminal charges.

Other defenses that may be helpful include:

• The STD does not have significant public health risks
• The partner knew about the disease and consented to risky behavior, and
• You were forced to engage in sexual activity against your will.

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Should You Pursue An Std Case

The decision to proceed with a lawsuit for the wrongful infection of a sexually transmitted disease must be made carefully after reviewing several issues with an attorney experienced in this area. The nonlegal considerations will vary with each individual. Legally, there are several guideposts to consider.

1. The statute of limitations

Every lawsuit must be filed within a certain period of time. Statutes control the various time periods for each type of legal action. Generally, for personal injury cases , the statute of limitations is five years. The tricky part is figuring out when the time clock starts running. Generally, the period begins when the person damaged first learns of the injury. In the years ahead, it is expected that the courts will address the various nuances associated with statute of limitations issues involving STD cases. For example, does the clock start from the first intimate contact resulting in infection, at the first signs of infection, or when the infection is first diagnosed? These issues are left to the future, although some common sense legal guidelines should be considered now. For example, a person who has suffered from herpes for 10 years has probably lost the ability to sue the wrongdoer.

2. The type of STD

3. Legal damages

4. Evidence and the STD case

5. Settlements or court trial?

Call or complete the online form to discuss your situation.

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Ohio Recognizes The Danger In Not Disclosing Stds

While it might be a misdemeanor to have sex without disclosing that you have herpes or chlamydia, the stakes are a lot higher if you have a more serious disease, like HIV. In fact, Ohio has laws that specifically target this type of behavior.

Under Ohio state law, it is a felony to have sex with another person if:

• You know that you have human immunodeficiency virus , and
• Engage in sexual conduct with another person without disclosing that fact.

It can also be a crime to have sex with any person under the 18 or who is not mentally capable of understanding the risk of engaging in sexual conduct with someone who has HIV.

Is sexual conduct more than sexual intercourse? It can be. In Ohio, sexual conduct means any touching of an erogenous zone of another, including without limitation the thigh, genitals, buttock, pubic region, or, if the person is a female, a breast, for the purpose of sexually arousing or gratifying either person.