Boy Scouts of America sex abuse survivors claim censorship, object to bankruptcy exit plans

On Monday, the Torts Claimants Committee, the official body chosen to represent abuse survivors in the case, filed an objection to the Scouts’ latest bankruptcy reorganization plan, saying it "minimizes the organization’s history of failing to protect children from sexual predators.".

Comprised of nine men who say they were abused as children at the hands of Scout leaders, the committee said it has concluded over hours of meetings that "the Boy Scouts is either tone deaf or purposely minimizing the childhood sexual abuse claims that led to this Chapter 11 case.".

"The Boy Scouts of America filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy to achieve two key imperatives: equitably compensate survivors who were harmed during their time in Scouting and continue to carry out Scouting’s mission for years to come," the organization said in a recent statement.

The growing tensions and costs of the largest sexual abuse bankruptcy case in history have spilled over to some of the country’s largest insurance companies, threatening the solvency of one and potentially ensnaring thousands of troop-sponsoring organizations, including the Mormon and Methodist churches. .

The objection filed by the Torts Claimants Committee details how difficult it will be for Boy Scouts to get the approval of survivors – a necessary step for the organization to re-emerge from bankruptcy as a viable entity.

In a brief filed Thursday, Mones said his clients have strong cases against local councils, which he and other survivors’ attorneys have long said will need to make significant contributions to a trust for survivors to gain support for a reorganization plan.  .

Law firm Pfau Cochran Vertetis Amala PLLC (PCVA) also filed an objection on Friday detailing similar cases in which Scouts, councils and sponsoring organizations knew of confirmed or suspected abuse but failed to stop it.

The Mormon church also filed an objection to the Boy Scouts’ plan, which was joined by the Methodist Church

In it, the Mormon church said that it had a long history with the Scouting organization, which it believed would take responsibility for any injuries or wrongdoing relating to Scouting activities

Many held dozens of policies over the years insuring the nonprofit for damages, including those arising from sexual abuse, which have long been expected to help fund a trust for survivors in addition to cash and other assets from the Boy Scouts

Century, Hartford and other insurers have pushed for more discovery in the case to determine the validity of claims, citing the high numbers of victims added by law firms right before the November bankruptcy filing deadline

In objections filed with the court, insurers said advertising campaigns "resulted in an astonishing, 55-fold increase in pending claims against the Boy Scouts," noting that the Scouts initially said it faced 275 current cases and anticipated another 1,400

The Torts Claimants Committee said in its objection that questioning the validity of claims is merely another effort to protect Boy Scouts and their insurers financially

"The Boy Scouts, Local Councils, Chartered Organizations, and their respective insurance carriers self-servingly speculate regarding unproven fraud (to justify the incredibly low values they propose to pay to Survivors)," the committee wrote, "rather than recognizing that a fulsome notice program and real statute of limitations reform is finally forcing them to account for the sordid history of Boy Scouts sexual abuse."