The US Supreme Court has refused to hear a challenge to the Boy Scouts of America's landmark $2.46 billion (£1.9 billion) settlement for sexual abuse claims, effectively solidifying the agreement. The decision on Monday thwarts an attempt by 144 abuse survivors to pursue legal action against churches and other organisations that operated scouting programmes where abuse occurred.
These claimants argued the 2022 bankruptcy deal improperly barred them from suing third-party organisations, which gained immunity in exchange for financial contributions. Although the Supreme Court later ruled that bankruptcy courts lacked authority to extinguish lawsuits against non-bankrupt contributors, this precedent did not apply retrospectively to older cases like the Boy Scouts' agreement.
Lower courts, including the Philadelphia-based 3rd US Circuit Court of Appeals, upheld the settlement, deeming disruption at this late stage unfair to both survivors and Scouting America, the organisation's new name. Scouting America, insurers, and other abuse survivors who backed the agreement had urged the Supreme Court not to intervene, warning that unravelling the settlement would unleash devastating emotional and financial repercussions, potentially forcing reclamation of funds from claimants.
The Boy Scouts sought bankruptcy protection in 2020 after US states introduced legislation allowing accusers to pursue claims relating to decades-old abuse allegations, leading to a surge of new legal actions. The Supreme Court had previously declined to halt the settlement in 2024, allowing the agreement to proceed while appeals continued in lower courts.
The organisation rebranded as Scouting America last year, adopting a more gender-neutral name as it tries to move past scandal and bankruptcy. The rebrand follows other momentous changes, including allowing gay youth in 2013, ending a ban on gay adult leaders in 2015, and accepting girls into Cub Scouts in 2018 and the flagship programme, renamed Scouts BSA, in 2019.
