A US judge has allowed a lawsuit alleging forced labour and human trafficking at a Massachusetts religious community to proceed.
On 26 June, Judge Leo Sorokin of the US District Court in Boston denied motions by the Community of Jesus, Arts Empowering Life and the Performing Arts Building Foundation to dismiss the case.
The lawsuit was brought by Oliver Ortolani, a former member of the Community of Jesus in Orleans, who alleges he and other children were subjected to forced labour while helping to build a performing arts centre in Brewster.
Ortolani, who left the community in 2023 at the age of 16, filed the lawsuit in July 2025. He claims the three organisations violated the federal Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act and Massachusetts laws relating to forced labour and human trafficking.
The Community of Jesus is a religious organisation with around 200 members, according to court documents.
Ortolani originally filed a RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act) claim against the three defendants, but at the request of Ortolani’s lawyer, the Court dismissed that claim with prejudice, officially ending it.
The performing arts building in Brewster — known as Arts Empowering Life Performing Arts Center — was built for and funded by the Community of Jesus, Art Empowering Life Inc. and the Performing Arts Building Foundation Inc., according to Ortolani's lawsuit. All three entities benefited from the unpaid labor of children, and continue to benefit with ongoing performances and ticket sales, the lawsuit alleges.
The building at 95 Southern Eagle Cartway is on 40 acres, and listed as an auditorium with a structured steel frame, built in 2020, according to town assessor records. The property has an assessed value of $4.1 million.
The law requires the court to accept Ortolani's factual complaints as true, according to the court document. The defendants have disputed the complaints, and they filed a motion to dismiss the case in November. The court's decision to deny the dismissal means the judge found Ortolani's allegations plausible.
A work program alleged for young boys
Ortolani claims the Community is a high demand/high control group that requires strict obedience to its dictates.
Over the course of 16 years, the Community made Ortolani move in with families other than his own at least 20 times, according to a court document in the latest ruling. In 2019, when he was 11 years old, Ortolani's parents signed waivers for his participation in a work program sponsored by the Community of Jesus.
All boys between the ages of nine and 16 were required to participate. That program was extended, and the boys worked on the construction site of the performing arts building, a venue where Community-sponsored events could be held. Revenue from those events support the Community.
Ortolani's allegation, the specifics
Ortolani's complaint alleges that the boys worked under strenuous conditions and suffered harsh discipline if they didn't perform. He alleges that the work program was supposed to have an educational component, which he claims it did not.
The ruling from June 26 stated that Ortolani's complaint was light on some factual details, that some timelines weren't exact, but that some allegations, including one — that the defendants knew about and intended the widespread, coercive actions that occurred at their construction site — were plausible.
Ortolani's complaints lodged against the Community of Jesus, Arts Empowering Life and Performing Arts Building Foundation include liability for forced labor, trafficking, attempted forced labor and trafficking, and conspiracy in violation of the federal trafficking act.
He is seeking $5.1 million in damages.
A pretrial conference was not scheduled as of June 30.
2nd case: Community of Jesus v Ortolani's parents
The Community of Jesus, Arts Empowering Life and Performing Arts Building Foundation filed a lawsuit against Ortolani’s parents, David and Ellen, on Nov. 19, 2025, in U.S. District Court in Boston. The suit seeks compensation from them for any damages and legal fees should their son’s lawsuit succeed.
The lawyer for David and Ellen Ortolani filed a motion to dismiss the Community's case, but it was denied. The court granted their request to strike from the case some allegations of a physical and psychiatric nature made against their son by the Community.
Because discovery, the exchange of documents, witness testimony and evidence, in the two cases overlap, if both cases proceed, the parties will need to coordinate between the two.
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect