Feb 24, 2024
On this episode of Cut to the Chase:, former U.S. Army special ops and third generation trial lawyer Jason Joy comes onto the show to discuss the double breaking news from the Supreme Court on the Boy Scouts Sexual Abuse Settlement that is tangentially up for review at the Court.
Earlier this month, the Court halted the Boy Scouts Settlement as the Court continues it’s review. But a week later, the Court decided to let the Settlement proceed even though the Court continues to review it and perhaps undoes the Settlement.
Like the Purdue Pharma and Sackler issue that is under review at the Court, the Boy Scouts settlement also concerns whether companies that did not file for bankruptcy can get released from future litigation by paying into the bankruptcy proceedings. The legal phrase to describe these companies getting essentially a “get out of jail free card” is called “non consensual releases”.
Normally in the bankruptcy world, to get bankrtupcy protection-the company seeking bankruptcy protection has to file for bankruptcy where that Court will effectively take over the company’s finances before signing off on a plan of reorganization.
The Boy Scouts settlement has been in effect for some time now and several of the boy scouts have actually been paid as part of the settlement. So it will be fascinating to see if the Court actually undoes the settlement after “the horses have left the barn” as Jason describes.
The world of mass torts continues to raise all sorts of significant bankruptcy issues that Cut to the Chase: continues to focus on, including the Boy Scouts Sexual Abuse Settlement. Take a dive into this episode to listen to all the horse trading that led to this contentious settlement and to see what is in front of the Supreme Court.