ALBANY – New York State is facing an onslaught of lawsuits accusing prison officers of sexually abusing adult inmates, litigation allowed under a new one-year window for survivors to sue, regardless of when the abuse occurred.

A single Manhattan-based law firm, Levy Konigsberg LLP, is handling more than 500 cases statewide, including nearly 150 cases filed or pending that claim abuse occurred in Western New York prisons. Several other law firms also are handling a high volume of cases, and the total number likely runs into the thousands.