Balboni (criminal justice, Curry College) interviews 22 adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse by Catholic Church clergy who sought justice through the US court system. Their stories highlight the promise and shortfalls of civil litigation in providing justice in these cases; one shortfall in particular is the focus on financial settlements in legal proceedings while overlooking the survivor's desire to see the Catholic Church publicly acknowledge its wrongdoing. A wealth of excerpts from the interviews shed light on the emotional toll of legal proceedings on the survivors, the emotional consequences of Church, family, and community members minimizing the priests' behavior, and the survivors' sense of healing when receiving settlements. In addition to emotional issues, the book looks at related questions such as what kinds of informed consent procedures are undertaken with victims, how to mitigate the stress of the litigation process, and why survivors chose civil litigation over other legal alternatives. Appendices offer notes on the study's methodology and the interview protocol. Annotation ©2011 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com) Read Less