The plaintiffs only asked the court to determine whether or not there had been a conspiracy to cover up abuse. Judge Burrell found that any conspiracy to cover-up should have been brought within the time frame of the alleged abuse. Therefore, all of the claims by the Maryland plaintiffs were dismissed in May 2013 because the statute of limitations had expired, 3 years after each turned 18; the claims by two Virginia plaintiffs were still within the statute of limitations. An appeal of the lower court's decision was heard by the Maryland appellate court in May 2014, and the lawsuit was again dismissed when the court found that the Plaintiff's attorney had filed the appeal too early. Maryland's highest civil court, the Court of Appeals, denied certiorari on September 24, 2014, permanently ending the case.