The Boy Scouts of America has filed for bankruptcy amidst hundreds of sexual abuse cases filed against the youth organization.
According to a court document filed in Delaware bankruptcy court on Tuesday, the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) listed liabilities of between $100 million and $500 million, but only had $50,000 or less in assets.
The filing coincides with the organization's challenge of facing hundreds of sexual abuse lawsuits, thousands of alleged abuse victims and falling membership numbers. The brankruptcy filing effectively suspends all civil litigation against it.
Paul Mones, a Los Angeles-based attorney representing "hundreds of sexual abuse victims in individual lawsuits," referred to the bankruptcy filing as a "tragedy."
He said: "These young boys took an oath. They pledged to be obedient, pledged to support the Scouts and pledged to be honorable. Many of them are extremely angry that that's not what happened to them and the Boy Scouts of America did not step up in the way they should have."
The sexual abuse lawsuits involved complaints of repeated fondling, exposure to pornography, and forced anal or oral sex. According to the BSA, they "care deeply about all victims of child abuse and sincerely apologize to anyone who was harmed during their time in Scouting."
However, Mones pointed out that instead of potentially having an opportunity to testify in court, alleged victims who had pending lawsuits will now need to file claims in bankruptcy court.
Reports of a possible bankruptcy filing have been circulating as early as December 2018, when the BSA hired the law firm Sidley Austin LLP for possible Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing assistance.
Since then, the youth organization has made several moves, including allowing children who identify as girls to join the Scouts, naming a new president who was a former Scout himself, and announcing a partnership with 1in6, an organization for male survivors of sexual abuse, to expand their services and better support the needs of victims.
