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Irish Times
17 hours ago
- Irish Times
Abuse survivors left waiting too long for redress from Scouting Ireland
Many men whose lives have been devastated by the sexual abuse suffered as children at the hands of scout leaders have told their stories to The Irish Times. When the historical child sex abuse scandal that rocked Scouting Ireland broke in 2018, senior figures in the organisation privately stressed there was no desire to put survivors through bitter court battles for redress. Seven years later, many are still waiting and fighting. More than 350 people reported being sexually abused as children in the Catholic Boy Scouts of Ireland and the Scout Association of Ireland, which merged to form Scouting Ireland in 2004. The true number of people molested by scout leaders is likely to be higher, given the reluctance to report childhood abuse. A review by child protection expert Ian Elliott concluded the abuse had been covered up for decades to protect the reputation of the movement. READ MORE About 70 alleged victims are suing Scouting Ireland to seek compensation for what happened to them as children. The number is still increasing, with the most recent case lodged this April. Solicitors representing alleged victims say Scouting Ireland has been aggressively contesting any legal cases taken by survivors. [ Scouting Ireland opted against 'non-adversarial' abuse survivors scheme ] In the two known civil cases where the organisation paid out settlements, both were only resolved at the last minute after High Court trials began. Abuse survivors say these lengthy legal fights for redress are compounding their pain. 'The toll is absolutely devastating,' said one man who took a case five years ago. 'They promised me that I wasn't going to be dragged through the court process,' he said. Scouting Ireland did not respond to questions about its approach to cases taken by abuse survivors. Financial settlements in historical abuse cases commonly run into six-figure sums. The legal fees to defend so many civil cases will also be significant. At the outset of the scandal, Mr Elliott advised Scouting Ireland to set up a victim support scheme as an alternative to 'adversarial' court fights. The idea was to work with survivors to help them heal. His internal proposal, seen by The Irish Times, said this scheme could include making financial payments. Mr Elliott, who led safeguarding reforms of the Catholic Church, said those who had been abused in legacy scouting associations needed to be 'engaged on a human level'. 'This cannot happen if you rely on a lawyer to respond to a victim. If you do, you are immediately embarking on a confrontation and challenge approach, which is extremely costly and very damaging for the survivors,' he wrote. Should Scouting Ireland opt to take the same defensive path as other institutions hit by abuse scandals, it would not survive the crisis, Mr Elliott said. The voluntary organisation does not have financial wealth on the scale of the Church or the State, so setting up a redress scheme would be very complex. It seems Scouting Ireland instead opted to buy time by robustly contesting any legal cases that were filed. This would allow it to spread the cost of settlements paid to survivors out over many years. Their instinct is to protect the future of the youth organisation, which tens of thousands of children enjoy today as members of cub and scout groups. In 2020, the organisation made an unambiguous public apology to victims of abuse. It stated: 'We want you to know that you are believed. We want you to know that we will support you.' That has not been the experience of many survivors who have rightly sought some redress for the devastating abuse they suffered as children.
Irish Times
17 hours ago
- Irish Times
Scouting Ireland opted against ‘non-adversarial' abuse survivors scheme
Scouting Ireland decided against setting up a 'non-adversarial' scheme to support survivors who were sexually abused as children by scout leaders, which might have avoided putting victims through lengthy court battles, documents show. The youth organisation is facing close to 70 High Court cases taken by alleged victims of childhood sexual abuse seeking compensation. The growing financial cost of the actions poses a serious threat to the voluntary body. Scouting Ireland has spent years grappling with the fallout of a historical child sex abuse scandal. Hundreds of people who said they had been sexually abused when they were children came forward in 2018, following reporting by The Irish Times. The abuse spanned decades and took place in predecessor bodies – the Catholic Boy Scouts of Ireland and the Scout Association of Ireland – where suspected abusers in positions of power covered up the crimes for years. READ MORE Documents recently obtained by The Irish Times show Scouting Ireland was advised against adopting a defensive legal approach towards survivors of abuse in its former associations. [ Abuse survivors left waiting too long for redress from Scouting Ireland ] [ Embattled Scouting Ireland board 'exhausted' by infighting, review finds Opens in new window ] Child protection expert Ian Elliott, who was brought in to help reform the organisation, recommended it set up a 'victim support programme', as an alternative to 'adversarial' legal battles. A proposal written by Mr Elliott said such a scheme would include 'facilitating healing, developing self-respect and apologising for the harm caused . . . It is not about giving money but where necessary, this can happen'. Opting to contest cases through the courts would be 'extremely costly and very damaging for the survivors', Mr Elliott said. His proposal, put forward in late 2018, said Scouting Ireland would 'not survive the current crisis' if it adopted the same confrontational approach to redress as other institutions devastated by past abuse scandals. Court records show the organisation is facing nearly 70 High Court cases, taken by people who were allegedly sexually abused as children in former scouting bodies. Norman Spicer, a solicitor with Coleman Legal Partners, who represents 40 of the plaintiffs, said Scouting Ireland had been 'vigorously defending' every case, despite having issued a public apology to those abused by former scout leaders. 'Forcing victims through an extremely adversarial litigation process in order to obtain justice adds insult to injury,' Mr Spicer said. Paul O'Toole, a survivor of David O'Brien – a prolific abuser serving multiple prison sentences for sexually assaulting boy scouts – is still waiting for a civil case he took in 2016 to be resolved. Another alleged abuse survivor, Mark Gaffney, said his lengthy legal battle had left him exhausted. 'I'm on my knees now at this stage. I'm feeling hard done by now it's going on for so long,' he said. Scouting Ireland did not respond to a series of questions about the approach it has taken to alleged abuse survivors pursuing civil cases. Law firm Mason Hayes & Curran took over Scouting Ireland's legal defence last year, replacing Sheehan & Co Solicitors, who had represented the organisation in civil cases taken by alleged abuse victims for several years. Settlements in civil cases involving historical child sex abuse can commonly be six-figure sums, on top of legal fees associated with defending the claim and contributions towards the plaintiff's legal costs. The youth organisation paid out a financial settlement in one case last year after two days of hearings in the High Court. Scouting Ireland had calculated that legal cases taken by abuse survivors posed a €7.4 million financial liability for the organisation in 2022. It has not published annual financial accounts since then, but it is expected the estimated liability has increased.
