A committee charged with representing tens of thousands of alleged victims of child sex abuse in the Boy Scouts of America bankruptcy asked the judge yesterday to terminate the BSA’s exclusive rights to file a reorganization plan, so that it can file its own, the Associated Press reported. The committee’s court filing came hours after attorneys for the Boy Scouts filed a fifth version of a proposed bankruptcy plan, which contains settlements the committee describes as “grossly unfair.” The committee asserted that it is the only party in the case that can propose a plan that treats abuse survivors “fairly and equitably” and not “sell out” or leave them short. “More than 18 months into the chapter 11 cases, the debtors’ fifth effort at a plan is just as inadequate and flawed as the first four,” the committee's attorneys wrote. The committee, joined by attorneys for several insurance companies, also asked the judge to postpone a key hearing, scheduled for next Tuesday, for at least three weeks to allow parties to review and file objections to the BSA’s new plan. The hearing was intended for the judge to consider the adequacy of a disclosure statement outlining a reorganization plan the Boy Scouts filed in July. That plan was superseded by the plan filed Tuesday, which includes substantial changes and additions.
