Welcome to BSALegal.org!
 This website was created on behalf of the Boy Scouts of America to inform the public about the legal issues that confront Scouting. Scouting has been under relentless legal assault and publicity barrage since the Supreme Court of the United States affirmed the Scouts' First Amendment right to freedom of association in 2000. Scouting will defend itself and the constitutional rights we all share as Americans. Most importantly, Boy Scouts of America will not allow the attacks to sway it from its mission: to prepare young people to make ethical and moral choices over their lifetimes by instilling in them the values of the Scout Oath and Law. Please visit this site often as it will be updated frequently. You are invited to register to be kept current on its contents. You will be notified by email when new information and features are added and when there are developments in the issues. On behalf of the more than three hundred Boy Scout Councils throughout America, welcome. Thank you for taking the time to read, listen, watch and learn. |
|  | Friday, May 23, 2008
Boy Scouts sues City of PhiladelphiaThe Cradle of Liberty Council of Boy Scouts of America today sued the City of Philadelphia to prevent the City from violating the Scouts' constitutional rights.The lawsuit can be downloaded by clicking here.
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Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Chicago Tribune: "Boy Scouts push for new relevance"The Chicago Tribune looks at the Boy Scouts of America in today's newspaper as the organization approaches its centenary in 2010: "Bruised by America's culture wars, battered by lawsuits alleging that it discriminates against atheists and gays, and beset by eroding enrollments, the Boy Scouts of America is approaching its centenary in 2010 determined to regain its footing as the nation's premier volunteer program to help boys grow into responsible men."
Read the story here.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Washington Post features Eagles' achievement Nice to have a national newspaper like the Washington Post recognize the transformative power of Scouting. Read here.
Thursday, January 10, 2008
Scouts ask California Supreme Court to protect Good Samaritans from lawsuits Boy Scouts of America submitted a friend of the court brief to the California Supreme Court in a case about the interpretation of that state’s “Good Samaritan” statute. Van Horn v. Watson, No. S152360. The Good Samaritan statute, Cal. Health & Safety Code § 1799.102, protects from liability those who provide emergency care in good faith at the scene of an emergency. An intermediate appellate court interpreted the statute as applying only to “medical” care in a “medical” emergency and concluded that the statute did not protect a rescuer who pulled someone from a car after a collision because she feared the car would catch fire or blow up. Boy Scouts of America teaches youth and their leaders to “be prepared,” to “do a good turn daily,” and “to help other people at all times.” Because of their values and training, Scouts do not hesitate to help fellow citizens in need. From 2004 through 2006, Boy Scouts of America awarded medals to over 80 Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts in California for saving lives, and thousands of Boy Scouts have earned merits badges for Emergency Preparedness and Lifesaving. Boy Scouts of America is concerned, however, that the lower court’s construction of California law will discourage citizens from helping one another, especially in emergencies, and subject well-intentioned rescuers to liability. Scouts who help others in time of emergency deserve the gratitude and encouragement of the State and not exposure to law suits. Here is story about the case from USA Today and an op-ed from the Sierra Sun.
Thursday, December 27, 2007
Philly Boy Scouts help family who lost home in fire Fox 29 in Philadelphia reports on how Boy Scouts from the Cradle of Liberty Council helped a Philadelphia area family who lost their home in a fire. Interesting contrast: the family was displaced by a fire and the Scouts are being evicted from their headquarters by the city.
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Boy Scouts of America and San Diego-Imperial Council, Boy Scouts of America note that the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in Barnes-Wallace v. Boy Scouts of America has decided to certify questions of California law to the California Supreme Court. Today’s decision from the Ninth Circuit declines to rule on the merits of the case but instead asks the California Supreme Court to answer questions about California constitutional law that the ACLU raised. “It is disappointing that after all these years, proceedings in the case are to be further extended, especially since, as the dissenting opinion of Judge Andrew J. Kleinfeld so forcefully points out, none of the plaintiffs has suffered any injury or has any standing to sue,” said Boy Scouts attorney George A. Davidson.