Boy Scouts of America's insurer agrees to $800 million settlement with victims of alleged sexual abuse

Attorneys involved in the Boy Scouts of America bankruptcy case have reached a settlement that would require one of the organization's largest insurers to contribute $800 million to a fund for victims of child sex abuse.

The national BSA organization filed bankruptcy last February in an effort to halt lawsuits against the organization from former scouts who were allegedly victims of sexual abuse.

Century Indemnity Co. and all affiliated companies will give $800 million to a fund for victims of child sex abuse in exchange for being released from any further liability concerning claims of sexual abuse. The payment from Century Indemnity Co., which was announced Monday, would be the largest sexual abuse settlement in U.S. history and would make the total amount of money in the trust more than $2.6 billion, according to the Associated Press.

The settlement has been reached as more than 82,000 individuals with sexual abuse claims must vote on the BSA's restructuring plan by December 28, according to the Associated Press.

BSA announced in July of this year that it would give assets valued at $250 million to the trust supporting survivors of abuse and asked local councils to give $500 million to the trust, according to the BSA restructuring website. Additionally, an updated version of the plan announced in September of this year says that the two large insurers of the BSA have reached agreements concerning their settlements.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and the Hartford have agreed to contribute money to BSA's sexual abuse settlement provided that they are released from further liability regarding sexual abuse claims. The Mormon Church agreed to contribute $250 million to the trust for victims of abuse, and the Hartford agreed on the contribution of $778 million, according to the plan.

If approved in court, the Century settlement would provide additional funds to the trust, including $40 million from local councils as well as an additional $100 million from the national BSA and local councils. The additional commitment can be attributed to growth in membership as a result of charter organizations continuing to sponsor local scouting units, according to the Associated Press.

“This is an extremely important step forward in the BSA’s efforts to equitably compensate survivors, and our hope is that this will lead to further settlement agreements from other parties, said the BSA organization in a statement, according to the Associated Press.

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