Here’s What’s Going On With the Boy Scouts After Decades of Sexual Abuse Allegations

The news follows a contested 2019 rebrand.

By Amanda Breen Apr 20, 2023
Bouillante | Getty Images

More than three years after filing for bankruptcy, the Boy Scouts of America’s Chapter 11 plan is official.

The Chapter 11 plan went into effect on Wednesday, bringing the case to an end and initiating the next step of developing the biggest compensation fund for victims of childhood sexual abuse of all time, The Wall Street Journal reported.

Related: Girl Scouts of the USA, Which Teaches Girls to Be Entrepreneurs, Is Taking on the Boys in a Federal Lawsuit

The Boy Scouts filed for Chapter 11 protection in 2020. The plan, which resolves the organization’s liability for decades of childhood sexual abuse and allows the company to stay in business as it reorganizes, was approved by a bankruptcy court last year — though some non-settling insurers and sex-abuse survivors appealed it, per the outlet.

Approximately $2.4 billion will be paid out to settle more than 82,000 individual claims of sexual abuse as part of the bankruptcy plan, with payments varying from a $3,500 minimum for those who choose an expedited distribution to millions for those who endured the most extreme abuse, and 86% of abuse survivors support the plan, per WSJ.

Related: How Much Did Mackenzie Scott Donate to the Girl Scouts

The news follows the organization’s 2019 rebrand when it announced it would change its name to Scouts BSA and start accepting girls into the program. But this led to a trademark dispute with the Girl Scouts over co-ed scouting, Reuters reported. A federal court in New York decided that the Boy Scouts hadn’t violated any trademarks in 2022.

More than three years after filing for bankruptcy, the Boy Scouts of America’s Chapter 11 plan is official.

The Chapter 11 plan went into effect on Wednesday, bringing the case to an end and initiating the next step of developing the biggest compensation fund for victims of childhood sexual abuse of all time, The Wall Street Journal reported.

Related: Girl Scouts of the USA, Which Teaches Girls to Be Entrepreneurs, Is Taking on the Boys in a Federal Lawsuit

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Amanda Breen

Senior Features Writer at Entrepreneur
Entrepreneur Staff
Amanda Breen is a senior features writer at Entrepreneur.com. She is a graduate of Barnard College and received an MFA in writing at Columbia University, where she was a news fellow for the School of the Arts.

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