The Boy Scout Bankruptcy Trust and re-organization plan will move forward sans more Appeals to the Supreme Court of the United States. The appeal has met its decision by the Appeals Judge.
“The Bankruptcy Code prevents us from disrupting the nonconsensual third-party releases in BSA’s Plan at this late stage,” the court said. “If proposed today, the Plan would be unconfirmable in the wake of Purdue and the Lujan and D&V Claimants could not have their claims released without their consent. And that temporal happenstance, we recognize, is a bitter pill to swallow.”
Gilion Dumas of Dumas & Vaughn LLC, an attorney who fought against the plan’s third-party releases, said she and her clients are disappointed with the “harsh result” of the court’s decision and are considering appeal options.
“This is a sad day for all victims of sexual abuse in Scouting,” Dumas said in a statement. “The court did not address the merits of our appeal, but dismissed on a statutory technicality.”
The court also rejected challenges raised by several Boy Scouts insurance providers that refused to settle their coverage liabilities in bankruptcy, saying the plan keeps intact their contractual rights and defenses to paying out claims under their applicable policies.
In its sole disagreement with the lower courts, the Third Circuit said that the Allianz insurers should be allowed to recover excess claims they incur in coverage litigation from the insurers that settled with Boy Scouts.
“The judgment reduction clause impermissibly releases contribution and indemnification claims the Allianz Insurers otherwise would be able to assert,” the opinion said.
Judge Anthony J. Scirica joined the majority. Judge Marjorie O. Rendell wrote a concurring opinion.” – https://news.bloomberglaw.com/bankruptcy-law/boy-scouts-bankruptcy-plan-survives-appeal-over-liability-shield
