Dozens of lawyers are seeking settlements on behalf of several thousand men who say they were harassed decades ago by Scout leaders or other leaders as Scouts, but can only now sue over recent changes to their states` statute of limitations. The current bankruptcy of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) in Delaware is an emblematic figure of how these problems can play out. At the heart of the Boy Scouts` bankruptcy are allegations of sexual abuse [Full disclosure: Our son was an Eagle Scout. He went through Cub Scouts and then Boy Scouts in Maryland before completing his Eagle Scout project (planning and executing a central road pole at a school for disabled children in Gaithersburg) and met with more than a dozen Scout leaders. All were exemplary people. I have never heard of a Scout who has been abused in any way. The example set for our son through exploration was, my wife and I believe, crucial in his decision to become an officer in the United States Marine Corps.] Allegations of abuse had haunted the BSA for years, with litigation multiplying following a landmark case in 2010 that led to the court-ordered publication of internal reports on volunteer abuse in 2012. BSA`s bankruptcy in 2020 was aimed at resolving ongoing abuse claims, compensating the real victims, and moving forward. Stang said the committee wants changes to the plan to provide better compensation, a better child protection plan and independent management of the settlement trust. By going to bankruptcy court, pathfinders can put these lawsuits on hold for the time being. But eventually, they could be forced to sell some of their huge real estate, including campgrounds and hiking trails, in order to raise money for a compensation trust fund that could exceed a billion dollars. The number of young people participating in Scouts has fallen below 2 million, compared to more than 4 million in the peak years of the 1970s.
The organization has tried to counter the decline caused by girls` acceptance, but its members suffered a blow on Jan. 1 when The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints — for decades a major sponsor of Scout units — cut ties and pulled more than 400,000 Boy Scouts in favor of its own programs. In Michigan, a consolidation of local Scout councils that began a decade ago led to the sale of numerous properties, including Silver Trails, a 269-acre camp about 20 miles (32 kilometers) northwest of Port Huron. A group called the Thumb Land Conservancy tried to buy it in 2019, but lost when scouts sold it to a gravel mining company. Joe, a victim who didn`t want her last name used because her family wasn`t aware of her experience, was abused by her scout leader as early as age 8 in the 1970s at a Connecticut camp sold years ago to make way for apartments on Candlewood Lake. He is not sure he wants people to camp on land where Scouts have already been abused. The plan also includes commitments to increase the safety of Boy Scouts, including: The bankruptcy represents a painful turnaround for an organization that has been a pillar of American civic life and a training ground for future leaders for generations. Attaining the rank of Eagle Scout has long been an achievement that politicians, business leaders, astronauts and others include in their resumes and official biographies. “We`re going to redouble our efforts to work with Boy Scouts, try to do what`s best for survivors and see if Boy Scouts and insurers are serious enough to help them,” Kennedy said.
It was then, it is now. As Friedman`s essay shows, the final problem with fraud is that mass crimes lawyers take their textbook to bankruptcy courts by generating an overwhelming number of previously unknown claims against the bankrupt company. Imagine Larry Lawyer claiming that every citizen who had ever come into contact with one of Acme`s buggies would have shortened their life expectancy by sniffing the paint used to cover the wooden frame. Suddenly, a new competitor for Acme`s limited assets emerges, and a beleaguered new debtor (Acme`s insurance company) suddenly has to defend thousands of claims in an administrative bankruptcy proceeding that is not suitable for a tort ruling. Japan has yet to reach an agreement on co-chairing a debt summit with Sri Lanka`s creditors, a government official in Tokyo said Thursday, as the island nation struggles to find a way out of a crippling economic crisis. The purchase would be part of the trust`s broader effort to preserve about 1,000 acres of open space along the Androscoggin River near Lewiston, land that has also been targeted by developers.