Raynes & Lawn had the privilege and responsibility of representing the most severely injured of the children abused by Jerry Sandusky. The child had been introduced to Sandusky at the Second Mile summer camp years after Penn State University had been alerted to Sandusky’s pattern of abusing young boys. When Penn State was unwilling to provide sufficient funds to meet the child’s life long needs, Raynes & Lawn sued Penn State in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas, beginning a lengthy legal battle, including Penn State being required to turn over millions of documents and produce dozens of its staff for depositions.
When Penn State attempted to delay and relocate the trial, Raynes & Lawn lawyers were able to prove that, as the Judge explicitly found: Penn State “blatantly misrepresented, glanced over or omitted important facts.” With trial rapidly approaching, Penn State agreed to settle for an amount that would ensure that the young man’s financial needs would be met for the rest of his life. At the Board of Trustees’ vote to approve the confidential settlement, one trustee accurately described the recovery as “an extraordinary” sum.