‘Trey’s Law’ Frees Sex Abuse Victims to Tell Their Stories

Victims of child sexual abuse in Texas can no longer be silenced thanks to Trey’s Law — a new Texas law that forbids the use of nondisclosure agreements (NDA) in legal settlements involving claims of childhood sexual abuse.

For too long, schools, churches and religious institutions, and other organizations have weaponized nondisclosure agreements to muzzle victims and avoid accountability for their failures to protect children in their care. Like the Boy Scouts of America and the Catholic Church before them, recent Texas cases in the headlines have shown how NDAs have been abused to silence victims.

With the passage of Trey’s Law, Texas joins several other states banning the practice. Importantly, the law, passed unanimously by both the Texas House and Senate, voids existing nondisclosure agreements. That means abuse victims who have been bound by NDAs are free to speak publicly about what they experienced without fear of reprisal. The law takes effect September 1, 2025.

“These are patterns we too often see in states where NDAs are still allowed,” says attorney Susan Ulrich of Dallas-based Waters Kraus Paul & Siegel. “The organizations are willing to pay a premium to ensure that their failures to protect children are not exposed. The victims themselves often do not understand the impact that the agreements can have on their emotional recovery.”

Trey’s Story 

The new law is named after Trey Carlock, who was abused at Camp Kunakuk, a summer camp in Branson, Missouri, popular with Texas families. Trey was among dozens of youth abused by former camp director Pete Newman over a period of several years. As an adult, Trey filed a lawsuit to seek justice and hold the camp accountable for its failures to protect him. But when he reached a settlement, he was forced to sign a nondisclosure agreement — a deal he would later describe as “blood money.”

Authorities say Newman may have abused hundreds of young campers, in part because camp leaders ignored early warnings and red flags that Newman was abusing children. For example, in 2003, a camp supervisor recommended that Newman be fired for inappropriate behavior with campers; instead, he remained at the camp for another six years.

Camp leaders also lied to families when they came forward with information about abuse, telling them that they were not aware of any other incidents. Many victims came forward individually, and the camp’s practice was to settle lawsuits with nondisclosure agreements. The result: the extent of the abuse was not known until many years — and many victims — later.

Living in silence while coping with the long-term effects of the abuse was too much for Trey, who confided to family how his inability to talk about the abuse made his recovery so much harder. He died by suicide at age 28.

Dark Secrets at a North Texas Megachurch

At North Texas megachurch Gateway Church, former senior pastor Robert Morris was indicted this spring on five felony charges of lewd or indecent acts to a child that dated back to his sexual abuse of a teenage girl in the 1980s. In testimony before the House Committee on Judiciary and Civil Jurisprudence earlier this year, Cindy Clemishire recounted how she first notified the church about the abuse when she was 17, but nothing happened to Morris. When she sued the church in 2005 to help cover her counseling experiences, she said she was offered $25,000 to settle and sign an NDA.

“I’m sitting here today because I did not accept that offer and refused to sign an NDA saying I couldn’t speak about my life,” she testified.

Morris resigned after Ms. Clemishire came forward publicly in 2024. He now faces felony indictments in Oklahoma. The revelations prompted a cascade of resignations of church elders and employees who had been aware of the abuse but had done nothing.

A Growing Movement to Outlaw NDAs 

Many other states have already outlawed the use of nondisclosure agreements in settlements involving child sex abuse victims. Missouri passed a law this year outlawing NDAs in cases of childhood sex abuse. New Jersey, Washington and California already have such laws in place.

“Organizations that perpetuate sexual assault – especially those that also promote strong moral codes – will abuse NDAs if given the chance,” says Ulrich, who has successfully sued on behalf of victims abused by the Catholic Diocese of Los Angeles, juvenile detention facilities and schools. “Their game plan is to deny responsibility, deflect blame and shame the victim into silence.”

The Important Role of Litigation to Stop Abuse

In addition to providing monetary damages that are crucial to helping victims rebuild their lives, sex abuse litigation is key to stopping abuse at schools, churches and other institutions. Criminal investigations rarely extend beyond the perpetrator, leaving institutions without scrutiny and accountability.

“We find these institutions failing to conduct background checks, failing to train employees to spot warning signs of abuse and failing to act when victims come forward,” Ulrich says. “It takes a lawsuit to make them stop.”