Under an agreement one lawyer described as “the tip of the iceberg,” the organization would pay tens of thousands of people who said they had been sexually abused over several decades.
The Boy Scouts of America reached an $850 million settlement agreement on Thursday with tens of thousands of people who said they were sexually abused by scout leaders or members over several decades. Kenneth M. Rothweiler, the lawyer who represents the largest group of claimants — about 16,800 — said in a statement that the agreement would be “the largest settlement of child sexual abuse claims in United States history.” In an interview on Friday, he added that the claimants could expect billions more in payouts from insurance companies and organizations that have sponsored the Boy Scouts. “It really is the tip of the iceberg,” Mr. Rothweiler said of the $850 million. “It’s really just a small down payment on what we will ultimately be able to deliver to the survivors.” In February 2020, the organization, facing an avalanche of sex-abuse claims that now total about 84,000 cases, filed for bankruptcy protection amid rising legal costs associated with the allegations, signaling the group’s intent to establish a trust to compensate victims. According to a motion filed in court on Thursday, the agreement has support from representatives of about 60,000 of the abuse survivors.
