Boy Scouts of America (BSA), reached an $850million settlement with tens of thousand of victims of sexual abuse by leaders and volunteers. This is the largest child sexual abuse case settlement in American history.
This settlement was filed Thursday in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court of the District of Delaware. It comes nearly a year after the century old organization filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy amid a flood of sexual abuse lawsuits.
The settlement involves over 84,000 people. It stems from allegations that the organization abused boys as far back as the 1960s.
The Thursday amount is larger than what the BSA initially proposed in March, when it said it planned to exit bankruptcy and put $220 million into a trust for victims, with local organizations potentially contributing another $300 million, bringing it to an average payout of $6,000 per claimant.|Thursday’s amount is higher than the original March proposal by the BSA . In March , it stated it would exit bankruptcy and deposit $220 million in a trust for victims. Local organizations could contribute another $300 million to bring it to $6,000 per claimant.
Under the Thursday settlement, each claimant would receive about $14,000, with about 60,000 survivors eligible to receive a payment, according to Daily Reuters. According to Daily Reuters , each claimant would be paid approximately $14,000 and about 60,000 survivors will also be eligible for a payment under the Thursday settlement.
The BSA also agreed to transfer insurance rights from the past 40 years into a trust. This trust will be managed by a survivor’s group.
The BSA will grant settlement trust access and implement protective measures in all BSA programs.
Ken Rothweiler, an attorney who represented more than 16,800 people who brought forth abuse claims against the youth leadership organization, said in a statement Thursday, “I am pleased that both the BSA and their local councils have stepped up to be the first to compensate the survivors,” according to Daily Reuters .Ken Rothw eiler was an attorney representing more than 16,800 youth leaders who filed abuse claims against the organization. According to Daily Reuters, Rothweiler said that he was pleased that the BSA as well as their local councils had stepped up to pay the survivors.
He said, “We will now negotiate avec the insurers and sponsoring or chartering organisations who have billions in legal exposure. A substantial portion of this is necessary to fairly compensation the survivors.”
According to Daily Reuters, the BSA stated in a statement that it would help local councils to make their contributions to Trust without additional draining on their assets and allow them to work with the national organization towards bankruptcy recovery.
The group stated that “there is still much to do to get approval from the Court for soliciting survivors to vote in favor of the BSA’s amended Plan of Reorganization.” “However this significant and encouraging step forward shows that the BSA is committed to a global solution.
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The BSA stated that they intend to confirm the Plan and emerge from bankruptcy in late 2012, with the intention of obtaining confirmation.
The Boy Scouts had said in a March bankruptcy court filing that it planned on selling dozens of Norman Rockwell paintings and oil and gas interests in 17 states in order to help pay for its settlement with sexual abuse survivors. In a March bankruptcy filing, the Boy Scouts stated that it intended to sell dozens of Norman Rockwell paintings as well as oil and gas interests across 17 states in order help with its settlement with survivors of sexual abuse.