Boy Scouts of America bankruptcy updates: What we know about settlements, payouts, more – USA TODAY

Boy Scouts files for bankruptcy amid deluge of child sex abuse cases

Boy Scouts of America filed for bankruptcy after a flood of sex abuse cases, reports of declining membership, & legal battles with insurance companies.

Alexis Arnold, USA TODAY

The Boy Scouts of America bankruptcy case has reached a critical step: Sexual abuse survivors are being asked to vote on the organization's restructuring plan. A two-thirds majority is needed to pass. If survivors vote in favor of the plan, itwill be evaluated by Judge Laurie Selber Silverstein at hearings in January.

So what led up to this point? And what's in the plan? Below is a synopsis of the bankruptcy case sofar.

If you are one of the 82,000 who filed a claim in the case, visit the Boy Scouts' restructuring website for more information including contact information for questions. Voting information can also be found on the website.

Aftermonthsof speculationand mountingcivil litigation, Boy Scouts filed Chapter 11 paperwork in February 2020in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware, amid declining membership and a drumbeat ofchild sexual abuse allegations. Even in the beginning, the Scouts' case was unprecedented in bothscope and complexity.

In court filings, the Boy Scouts said it faced275 abuse lawsuits in state and federal courts around the country, plus another 1,400 potential claims.

BANKRUPTCY PROTECTION: Boy Scouts files Chapter 11 in the face of thousands of child abuse allegations

FUTURE OF SCOUTING:What we know about victims, assets and the future ofthe BSA

Boy Scoutsof Americahas argued thatthe national organization should be the only entity required to coverfinancial settlements in thesexual abuse casesthatlanded the organization in dire financial straits.

The national organization describes its relationship with local councils asessentiallya franchise arrangement:The national group handles the development of Scout content and structure, licensing, training, human resources, legal support and information technology; the local councils are separate legal entities that run the troops.

However, attorneys for survivors of abuse say the local councils bear much of the responsibility for that abuse, and shouldn't be protected from liability. They further accusedBoy Scouts of attempting to shield assets the majority of which are owned by local councils, notthe national organization.

In theoriginalbankruptcy filing, the national organizationestimated it owns$70 million in land and buildings.

The USA TODAY Network found$101 million in local councils property in the state of New York alone.

TENSIONS RISE: What is the role oflocal councils' role in Boy Scouts bankruptcy proceedings?

A historic 90,000 plus sexual abuse claims werefiled by the November 2020 deadline making it thelargest-ever child sex abuse caseinvolving a single national organization.

Roughly 10% of those claims were duplicates, dropping the number to 82,000.

Additional vetting will happen after a plan is confirmed and a trustee is appointed to administer the trust. That process islikely to include a review of information provided by claimants, including the name of their abuser as well as the location and date of the abuse.

UNPRECEDENTED: Nearly 90,000 file sexual abuse claims against the Boy Scouts

In March, Scouts proposedpaying roughly $220 milliontoward a trust to compensate survivors, andanother$300 million from a voluntary contribution from local councils.

The number is a fraction of the $1 billion of the organization's estimated value, and a sliver of the value of its subsidiaries, including local councils and various trusts and endowments, which USA TODAY estimates could exceed $3.7billion.

The proposal equated to roughly $6,000 per survivor if divided evenly and was universally met with pushback.

More: Boy Scouts of America plan to exit bankruptcy would pay abuse survivors an average of $6,000 each

More: Boy Scouts says it's safe, and offers sex abuse victims just 80 days to file claim. Victims balk.

Attorney: Boy Scout plan "woefully inadequate"

An attorney representing over a thousand former Scouts calls the bankruptcy reorganization plan submitted by The Boy Scouts of America this week "woefully inadequate." Michael Pfau said the plan "is short on facts and frankly, short on money." (March 2)

AP

In July, Boy Scouts more than doubled itsinitial offer of compensation to sexual abuse survivors increasing the contribution from the national organization to $219 million and from the local councils to $600 million.

The$850 million settlementhas been praisedas the largest for sex abuse claims in U.S. history.Yet,it remains unclear how the plan would get anywhere close to Boy Scouts' own estimation of thevalue of theclaims, which they say isbetween $2.4 billion and $7.1 billion.In a footnote, Scouts acknowledgedthe settlement reached with victims attorneys will only cover 10% to 30% of thetotal value.

At issue is whetherclaims that are time-barred under statutesof limitations will be eligible for payouts. In many states, victimsare barred from filing lawsuits over abuse after aperiod of time has passed; however,laws in roughly two dozen states have changed in recent years.

Under theBoy Scouts' plan, claimants wholive in states with restrictive statutes of limitationswill be dinged an unspecified amount, or they can take an expedited payment of $3,500. Insurers argue that any plan requiring them to pay those claims violates both their policies and bankruptcy code because lawsuits on those same claims wouldn't be viablein civil court.

HISTORIC SETTLEMENT: Boy Scouts offer to compensate sexual abuse victims$850

UPDATES:Settlement OK'd by judge, but amounts for survivors still unknown

Within the hundreds of pages of the Boy Scouts' reorganization plan and accompanying court documents are explanations for how the 82,000 abuse claims will be vetted and paid out.

One person the bankruptcy trustee will make the decisions, guided by three main topics: how severe the abuse was, where it occurred and how well the claimants can document it.

How much money will be available for victims once their claims areevaluated is another of many unknowns holding up the case 18 months after it was filed.

A USA TODAY analysis of court filings suggests that as many as half of those who filed claims could end up with a few thousand dollars a fraction of what their counterparts have been allotted in more than a dozen bankruptcy cases involving Catholic dioceses.

The plan also sets up commitments to keep scouts safer, including:

PAYOUTS: In Boy Scouts bankruptcy, which sexual abuse victims will get a settlement?

Judge Silverstein signed an order in late September allowing the nonprofit'splan for reorganizationto be voted on bycreditors,includingtens of thousands of sexual abuse survivors.

It marked the first time abuse survivors had a direct say in theBoy Scouts' plan.

On Dec. 13, an $800 settlement was announced with another of Boy Scouts' primary insurers, Century Indemnity Company. Also included is an additional $40 million from local councils, upping their contribution to $640 million.

The settlement would increase the value of the trust for survivors to around $2.6billion.

VOTE: Survivors will soon vote on Boy Scout's plan to exit bankruptcy, a crucial next-step in case

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Boy Scouts of America bankruptcy updates: What we know about settlements, payouts, more - USA TODAY