Civil lawsuit took advantage of California’s lookback window to hold Kobeissi responsible for their abuse

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, August 5, 2022 /EINPresswire.com/ -- After years in court, a Los Angeles Superior Court jury found that Mike Kobeissi, founder of the multi-million-dollar real estate business Kobeissi Properties in La Canada-Flintridge, sexually abused his cousins Dan and Brad when they were children and awarded the now-adult brothers more than $12 million each for past and future pain and suffering.

Mike Kobeissi came to the United States from Lebanon as a teenager in 1982, staying with his uncle Hussein Kobeissi. It was there that he began to sexually abuse the two brothers. For more than a decade, he would sneak into their rooms late at night, raping them with forced oral and anal sex. The abuse continued for more than a decade until Brad, the younger brother, reached puberty. Mike even went so far as to marry the boys’ older sister – his own first cousin – so that he had an easier means to continue the molestation, having them over for sleepovers at his subsequent homes on a regular basis.

To keep Brad and Dan from reporting the abuse, Mike would try to convince them it was normal activity and shower them with gifts. He would claim he was teaching them how sex with women worked and that “you just need to release it once in a while.” Mike also would lavish them with expensive video games, toy cars, and other presents that young boys their age found exciting.

It wasn’t until they were adults that Brad and Dan fully processed the trauma they had experienced as children and accepted that Mike raped and abused them. Though it was too late to file criminal charges, thanks to a relatively new California law, they were still able to file suit in civil court – seeking to hold their cousin/brother-in-law responsible for the heinous acts he performed against them, find closure, and recover financial damages.

“These cases are about holding the abusers responsible, keeping them from raping and molesting others, and hopefully helping the survivors find some level of closure,” said Alexander Gamez, the attorney at Boucher LLP – a boutique Los Angeles-based law firm that specializes in sexual assault and abuse cases – who represented the Kobeissi brothers.

After nearly four years in court, a jury found that Mike did, in fact, rape and abuse his younger cousins and awarded the brothers millions in damages. The lead case number is 18STCV03139, filed in the Superior Court of California’s Los Angeles County North Central District.

“Don’t suffer in silence,” said Raymond P. Boucher, the founder of Boucher LLP, who won landmark verdicts against the archdioceses of Los Angeles and San Diego for child sex abuse. “I’ve worked with so many sexual abuse and assault survivors that I know it’s vital to seek help. If you want to take legal action, California passed a special law that partially expires at the end of this year allowing adult survivors of childhood abuse to file civil suits.”

Survivors of sexual assault and abuse have many options to seek help. They can call the National Sexual Assault Helpline at 1-800-656-4673, visit RAINN’s (the Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network) website, or find a local rape crisis center on VALORUS’s website.

Boucher LLP also offers free consultations for any current or former California residents who believe they might benefit from filing a civil suit. More information is available at boucher.la or by calling 1-818-340-5400. California also is offering a special lookback window that expires at the end of 2022 allowing older survivors of abuse to file suit.

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About Boucher LLP
Boucher LLP, available at www.boucher.la, is a boutique law firm with extensive legal expertise in cases involving sexual abuse, assault and harassment, catastrophic personal injury, wrongful death, product liability, workplace accidents, wage and hour violations, faulty medical devices, false labeling, and civil rights. It has tried or otherwise resolved cases resulting in the recovery of more than $500 million for its clients over the past four years.

About Alexander Gamez
Alexander earned his B.A. from California State University, Fullerton and his J.D. from Southwestern Law School. While in law school, he obtained numerous awards and distinctions for his public interest and pro bono efforts and clerked for the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office and the U.S. Equal Opportunity Commission. Alexander has recovered millions of dollars on behalf of victims of sexual abuse and workplace violations.

Ian Watts
Consumer Attorney Public Relations
+1 (818) 330-8858
ianw@camginc.com