David M. Ring

Sexual Abuse & Personal Injury

Taylor & Ring partner David Ring’s legal work to get justice for vulnerable victims can require years of heartbreaking research and depositions. Yet settlements on behalf of those victims make the work worthwhile.

Case in point: in May 2022, Ring announced Lucia Mar Unified School District had paid a record $10 million to settle a civil lawsuit on behalf of a special needs child sexually abused by her school bus driver. [Jane Doe vs. Lucia Mar Unified School District, Case number: 18CV-0205] Ring filed the lawsuit in San Luis Obispo County in April 2018. The bus driver is already serving 16 years in prison for the crime. The school district was accused of negligence for hiring the driver despite his criminal record, then ignoring complaints from the 9-year-old’s parents about the driver’s behavior.

Ring often represents sexual abuse survivors in cases against schools, youth organizations, and churches. He said the sexual abuse cases are professionally satisfying but emotionally draining, so he varies his caseload by taking on serious personal injury cases such as wrongful death, construction site accidents, and product liability.

“It makes me a better lawyer,” he said.

Taylor & Ring have filed numerous lawsuits over the years against the Los Angeles Unified School District on behalf of sexual abuse and assault victims. In November 2021, Ring filed seven lawsuits against the school district on behalf of victims who were first-graders at 96th Street Elementary School in the 1980s and 1990s. Does 1-7 v. Los Angeles Unified School District, 20STCV28686 (L.A. Sup. Ct., filed 2021). The LAUSD allegedly ignored evidence that the students were being sexually abused by their teacher.

Under California law AB 218 signed by Governor Gavin Newsom in 2019, the statute of limitations is extended for victims of childhood sexual abuse. They’re able to recover damages through civil claims many years later. Ring said the passage of time allows the court to see the long-term harm caused by these perpetrators.

The law firm of Taylor & Ring was founded by Ring and partner John Taylor two decades ago this year.

“Time flies. Fortunately, my law partner and I have a tremendous partnership,” Ring said. “We found our niche.”

– Jennifer McEntee