Boy Scouts of America Reach ‘Historic’ $850M Settlement on Sexual Abuse
The agreement is the first legal settlement in a long list of lawsuits against the Boy Scouts, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in February 2020.
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The Boy Scouts of America (BSA) reached an $850 million settlement with more than 60,000 men who sued the institution over alleged sexual abused by adults in scouting over several decades, says NPR. This agreement is the first legal settlement in a long list of lawsuits against the Boy Scouts, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in February 2020. This is more than double the groups initial proposal to victims. Under the agreement terms, local councils are expected to contrite to the settlement fund. The deal also requires nonmonetary commitments to abuse victims, including youth protection measures, a reporting system, formation of a Child Protection Committee, and information sharing related to abuse claims.
Ken Rothweiler, one of the three lead negotiators represented more than 16,000 alleged victims of abused, much of which was chronicled and recorded in an internal list of leaders preying on boys called the “perversion files.” These filed dated back to the 1940s. He says this settlement is historic as he called the deal “the largest settlement of sexual abuse claims in United States history.” The BSA called the agreement “part of our ongoing efforts to reach a global resolution that will equitably compensate survivors and ensure Scouting’s future by resolving past abuse cases for both the national organization and local councils,” in a statement.
