ThenNow

57 minutes ago, gpurlee said:

Perhaps you will be surprised. That might be a very politically astute move on the part of the BSA. On-going credibility for the BSA is likely to be an issue and appointing persons who are good vocal advocates for youth protection and will hold their feet to the campfire could be a wise option.

Perhaps. However, if none of the TCC members are invited, that is neither wise nor easily explained away. Those 9 men were selected by the US Trustee to represent ALL BSA child sexual abuse survivors for a reason. That selection and appointment came after a fairly rigorous application and interview process. They have been intimately involved in this case since they were seated. Who, among survivors, knows more about the workings and machinations of this case? No one. Period. I also challenge anyone to say other survivors know or understand more than they do, collectively, about BSA youth protection and YPT. Also, they are the survivors who were instrumental in forwarding and insisting upon the non-monetary YP and YPT demands. My honest opinion, and the media has assisted with this, is the Coalition has co-opted and hijacked TCC work and initiative for their own benefit. They are assuming roles and achievements they should not be granted and have not accomplished (at least not on their own, as they claim).

1 hour ago, elitts said:

I know that he has been absent for several months in the past and returned so there is still a chance that he'll return at some point.

The most recent sabbatical saw him return with a nice tan, a beach-chill vibe and renewed energy for the scuffle. I love a good melee, but I have plenty of my own mania to go around. That is neither an accusation nor judgment by implication, simply a matter of well-documented fact. As some here know, we ran hard together for many months and I love and respect him. I do worry about people and hope he’s doing well. 

5 minutes ago, MattR said:

You're right, we still don't know the details. And as is typical, I don't think the BSA knows them either. It could be nefarious or it could be the usual, not very well thought out idea.

It would have a lot more appeal if they had used the TCC's version. Instead, it's very coalition centric. Given how the voting is going, the optics are certainly not good.

As I’ve said before, with obtuse references to Kurt Cobain and Tobi Vail, there whole campaign smells like “teen spirit” (or desperation) to me. 

27 minutes ago, Sentinel947 said:

so how does our guy @ThenNow get on it? 

Thanks for your support. I’m pressing up some Willkie buttons as I type. Well, not as I type, but you feel me. I sent an email to BrownRudnick and will keep you posted. (Get it? Posted?)

12 minutes ago, Eagle1993 said:

Let’s see the names they add before we say this group is useful.  If they add only survivors who support the plan, I question the entire proposal and expect it is nothing more than a marketing ploy to try to get votes as KR has not been able to double the cash as he committed.   

When there was a whiff of any appointment of any survivor to any such role, board or working group, I submitted my name. No response. Anyone think they’ll be inviting me or Dr. Kennedy or John Humphrey to sit in any of those chairs? Yeah. That’s a big chubby no.

9 hours ago, Muttsy said:

You killed the brightest star in this forum’s constellation.

If I recall correctly, stars flame out or implode of their own accord, having exhausted their fuel. 

Random note if you’re watching or will watch the Coalition update. Their recently engaged bankruptcy expert, Arik Preis, is speaking on the broadcast. He is attempting to rebut the TCC’s assessment of the Plan and recommended “No!” vote. Arik was one of the attorneys hoping to be hired as counsel to the TCC. He was not selected and, to my knowledge, is not expert in child sexual abuse cases. When I was in Wilmington to apply for the TCC, he lobbied me hard to hire him, if I was selected for the TCC. In so doing, he was very disparaging of current TCC counsel. I think it’s important you know that. It’s no surprise he’s popping up here.

Oo. Update. Ann Andrews is now speaking. Interestingly, she cornered me in Wilmington and was likewise not favorable to current TCC counsel. Hm. This is very curious, no?

I’m assuming this will be discussed on tonight’s episode of Ken TV.

4 hours ago, RememberSchiff said:

The Survivor Working Group will be comprised of between 15-20 members, including between 8-12 survivors who are members of the Coalition

8-12 from the Coalition? Um, the TCC? Hello? McFly…?!?!

4 hours ago, RememberSchiff said:

the Coalition demanded that the Working Group be open to all survivors, to ensure that all perspectives are heard.

So, I can be on it? Any of you other fellas get an invite?? 

Does anyone have the link to the Coalition’s first town hall/update? I see the second one on their site, but can’t find the first. Many thanks and may the road rise up to meet you. Just try not to meet it in the middle, which I have famously been known to do. 

9 minutes ago, clbkbx said:

This is my attorney and they have been good to work with.

The firm is representing you in the Chapter 11 and state court, assuming your SoL context allows for that?

28 minutes ago, 100thEagleScout said:

How successful you do in state court is like 10% the facts of the case and 90% the attorney you’ve hired for the case.  Personally I have a large law firm partner who filed on my behalf in state court because small time attorneys would have a very difficult time pressuring the LCs into a larger individual settlement.

Yes. Good reinforcement. I was trying not to disparage the single attorney representing the 7 victims, but I would not have selected him. Not a chance.

On that note, anyone who is willing, I would love to know how you feel about your counsel in the case. I have heard about AVA (both sides of the experience), the Coalition, Zuckerman-Spaeder, Jeff Anderson, Tim Kosnoff and a few others. Curious. 

4 minutes ago, T2Eagle said:

It is interesting to think of this settlement in comparison to the current plan 5.x.  Essentially the victims will be splitting the insurance coverage of the scouts and a much smaller amount from the self insurance fund of the Chartering Org.  This doesn't seem that different from the current plan on the table.  

It also makes me wonder how viable the alternative idea of "well let's all just go to state court" is.  This was a pretty straightforward case with criminal convictions, egregious behavior, and in the municipality a defendant traditionally thought of as being fairly deep pocketed.

Agreed. I am now curious to understand it in greater detail. I contacted news outlets who cover the Chapter 11 to get their take on it, too. It rather doesn’t make sense, cents or dollars, does it? Several Tier One claims with convictions. Something is off...

11 hours ago, gpurlee said:

https://www.courier-journal.com/story/news/2021/11/01/louisville-explorer-scout-sexual-abuse-cases-settled-million/6238607001/

Interesting. Note the victims’ attorney said the city’s insurer will be paying and implies some cases were time-barred. Oo. And our “pennies on the dollar” reality is reinforced, yet again! Last thing. Tad Thomas is not a seasoned child sexual abuse attorney. That may or may not have contributed to the low settlement, given 7 victims and the nature and duration of the abuse allegations.

“Thomas said the city and its insurance company will pay the settlement. 

He said he would have liked to get more but questions about the statute of limitations may have reduced the value of some of the cases. 

Thomas said the bankruptcy filing of the Boys Scouts of America last year also affected them. If the suits had been transferred to U.S. Bankruptcy Court, they would have been worth only 10 cents on the dollar.”

46 minutes ago, Eagle1993 said:

The story states the BSA insurance company would pay $3M of the settlement.  If it is really an insurance coverage for National BSA (not the LC) then it should be going through the bankruptcy court.  Other settlements that included insurance payouts had to be approved the Judge Silverstein.  

And, as part of the settlement, Plaintiffs agree to withdraw their Proofs of Claim in the bk. I just skimmed. It’s a curious settlement agreement. I’ll be back...

I also contacted the reporting media outlet to see of they can clarify.

https://htv-prod-media.s3.amazonaws.com/files/2021-10-29-executed-settlement-agreement-redacted-redacted-1635796318.pdf

20 minutes ago, qwazse said:

Let me ease your mind. There will be no global resolution at the CO level. A victim might have a chance of forcing a CO with a large number of accumulated assets to the table. The odds increase with the number of victims. So, I would give you high odds with your Catholic CO of exacting something because the diocese will most likely hold the liability.

Going after a volunteer fire department in a distressed community? A few now-impoverished friends who hosted a scouting group for a few years then disbanded? With no liability coverage? A victim might get more with a tin cup.

Think of it this way: if COs were estimated to have had consolidated wealth much larger than BSA's, where do you think legal action would have started in the first place.

Good points. Danke. 

I’m trying to determine if my CO is part of the Ad Hoc Committee of Methodist and Catholic Churches, currently in negotiations with the powers that be. I sort of doubt it. 

As to easing, the thought of suing my mother’s lifelong parish might more accurately be described as nauseating, however. Same holds with pushing them around in the bankruptcy, but if that’s what it takes...

27 minutes ago, Eagle1993 said:

How is a BSA insurer agreeing to cover this.  Wouldn't this go through the bankruptcy court?

The Metro was the single institutional defendant, I take it? The case clearly didn’t get the benefit of the automatic stay, so that’s my assumption. If true, how/why would the insurer be constrained? I know little or nothing, so I’m just spitballing, while simultaneously herniating my gray matter, striving to avoid dark humor and words with obtuse meaning. I’ve been boning up on language drift and conversational dilution so I know what to do. This will be my modest contribution to the systematic extinction of dictionaries everywhere.

Query: Does anyone have a notion as to how in the blazes a true “global resolution” can be had when COs are so numerous, varied, and in innumerable states of identity crisis - name changes, location changes, transfers and mergers - not to mention other problematic wickets? This has been my latest cerebral vexation at 2:16AM or thereabouts. In the last 25 years, my Catholic CO has changed names twice to my knowledge, more likely three times, and is party to at least one parish consolidation. Riddle me this, if you please. (Nod to the soon and coming film, The Batman.)

32 minutes ago, elitts said:

Even if this passes, it would only be relevant to cases that could be filed in federal court.

Ja. That’s why CHILDUSA Advocacy continues its march into state legislatures, coalescing both sides of the aisle in support of some form of the Child Victims Act.

57 minutes ago, RememberSchiff said:

Not hard to find NCCS (National Catholic Committee on Scouting) website. Thanks to @skeptic for providing scouter.com with early notice.

I’m dense and technologically lazy, so thank you. 

On 10/30/2021 at 7:29 PM, skeptic said:

A Scouter friend posted this from the Catholic Committee. 

Do you have a link to this or source verification? I’m not questioning, just hoping to snag it. My CO is a Catholic parish and this will be good for me to have in my file, along with the source cite. Many thanks.

6 hours ago, Eagle1993 said:

John Humphrey (member of the TCC) tweeted out late last night the following…”A no vote is a slight delay. We are making progress behind the scenes.”

Would please direct me to his Tweet or post it? Anyone who knows…

18 minutes ago, MYCVAStory said:

I'll just leave this here...it is SO unfortunate that an attorney saying he reprsents thousands of Survivors, many who have had their lives ruined, would post this right now courtesy of Tim Kosnoff's Twitter: https://twitter.com/SexAbuseAttys/status/1453544554452303873/photo/1

Yup. I sent those gps coordinates to some media. Unbelievable.

Btw, from a strategic standpoint, who in their right mind does something like that at a moment like this? I’ll let you figure out where I’m going with that. This is not a personal judgement, just an assessment of strategy or lack thereof.

2 hours ago, clbkbx said:

Maybe this is also an insight into the TCC's approach and why they don't agree with the LDS terms.

That and it’s WAY too low. 

2 hours ago, DJ72 said:

As an example, why wasn’t the same logic applied to, say a local council that shows a contribution of 2 million with a low number of claims and in an open state. These claimants could possibly receive close to the valuation of their individual case. Under the current plan NOBODY receives near the valuation of their case but if a different methodology was applied, some would. Additionally, the Local Council would be paying damages to the individual scouts under their care that they allowed to be harmed.

I have no thoughts on the logic, but I do know the TCC is not pleased with the methodology being applied to the LDS contribution. One of the survivor to survivor wickets of the sticky variety that comes up in your scenario is taking some of us and further “pitting” us against the others of us. This is what I mean.

Let’s say one man has an open state Tier One abuse claim with maxed out Scaling Factors. But, his LC (and let’s say CO) have tiny money. That will hurt to watch a lower tier fellow in an open state with big money get a more. Yes? Logical? Maybe. Ethical and painful? Maybe not, but definitely yes. There are all manner of permutations to this, going beyond the nagging feeling of being “cheated” based solely upon the geography of one’s abuse. One of the things I didn’t want to see going into this is the setting of one man against the other. SoLs already do this. These more complex variations would create even deeper lines of demarcation. Dunno. Just my feelings. I recognize those potentially illogical emotions sit idly by at the negotiation table, nearly irrelevant in light of the unpleasant realities of a black and white bankruptcy process. I ramble. Nothing new. At least I resisted veering into dark humor or contorted metaphor. Or so I hope. 

17 minutes ago, MattR said:

The argument now is what that total pot of money is.