A Safe, Confidential Environment for Survivors

When survivors of sexual assault or abuse reach out to attorney Karen Barth Menzies to talk about their experience, they can be sure they are in a safe, confidential environment. Karen says, “I always emphasize that all of it remains confidential. It can be as simple as one conversation that allows me to provide empowering information about their options, even if they’re not ready to talk about what happened to them.”

Often, Karen’s first conversation with survivors focuses on the issues of consent and identifying the survivor’s experience as sexual assault. After working with many survivors, Karen says, “It really became clear that many women don’t know whether they have been assaulted or not.” Often women may experience shame or self-blame. “The most difficult thing for a survivor is blaming themselves and feeling that they played a role in it, and what I do is provide information in a way that helps them understand that, just because something was going along a certain path, if they withdrew their consent or were incapable of giving consent — that is assault.” Karen also emphasizes that the absence of a “no” does not imply consent – especially when there is a power disparity between the survivor and the attacker.

“It is really important for survivors to begin the process of understanding what happened to them, and where they go from there is up to them,” Karen says. She stresses that litigation is not always the answer and she doesn’t ever want to push a survivor in a particular direction. “I want to be very honest and open with survivors about their chances of success because litigation is going to be traumatizing in and of itself. Having an open honest conversation in a safe, confidential environment is the most important thing for me.”

Survivors who have questions about their experience can call Karen or reach out through the website and know that they will have an honest, confidential conversation. For those not ready to reach out, we are constantly adding resources to our website to help survivors understand the issues associated with sexual assault and abuse. Those who do reach out find a kind, knowledgeable, trauma-informed voice. Sometimes just a single conversation is enough to help someone. Karen says, “If I can take my legal career and knowledge and skills to help survivors understand the impact of sexual assault and abuse and help them understand their options, to me that’s meaningful. That’s where I want to focus my energy for the rest of my career.”

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