Texas Governor Greg Abbott has signed into law a bill from the state legislature that renders nondisclosure agreements signed by victims of sexual abuse unenforceable.

Senate Bill 835, commonly referred to as Trey’s Law, “invalidates and makes nondisclosure and confidentiality agreements unenforceable if they restrict or limit an individual’s capacity to disclose an incident of sexual abuse.” This was a “significant legislative achievement” approved during the latest Lone Star State legislative session, the governor stated on June 21.

“Survivors can speak out and seek justice—free from fear and restriction,” Abbott, a Republican, wrote on X, the social media website formerly known as Twitter.

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The law is named for Trey Carlock, of Dallas, who died by suicide at the age of 28 in 2019. He was forced to sign an NDA as part of a settlement in his lawsuit against Kanakuk Ministries, a Christian sports camp in Branson, Missouri. The director, Pete Newman, “groomed and sexually abused Trey and countless others,” according to the organization set up in Carlock’s name.

Newman was convicted of sexually abusing at least six minors in 2010 and sentenced to life in prison. Because of statute of limitations, Carlock had to file a lawsuit against Kanakuk when he was 23 years old. He was sexually abused between the ages of 7 and 17 when he was a camper at Kanakuk.

“Kanakuk and its agents forced settlements on ‘John Does’ like Trey, which included restrictive NDAs, silencing victims and covering up what Kanakuk knew about Newman and when (along with concealing other important information from the public),” the Trey’s Law organization said.