The plaintiff, now in his 30s, alleged he was sexually abused numerous times as a child at a ski area in western Massachusetts, from when he was approximately 11 to 15 years old.
When the owner of the ski area hired the alleged perpetrator, she was aware of his history in another state of alleged sexual abuse of boys yet allowed him unsupervised access to young boys. She provided an apartment on the ski resort premises where the perpetrator allegedly sexually assaulted the plaintiff and other boys. The perpetrator was also a martial arts instructor.
The plaintiff suffered trauma and PTSD.
Suit was filed in 2020 after multiple Chapter 93A/176D demands.
The settlement was with owner and the ski area; the case will proceed against the alleged perpetrator. Confidentiality provisions restrict the plaintiff from speaking to the media and identifying parties in legal publications.
The claim involved more than one time period and two insurance companies, including a third-party administrator. The complaint for declaratory judgment made by one insurance carrier in federal court challenged insurance coverage for the defendants. The declaratory judgment claim was not litigated and has been dismissed as part of the settlement agreement.
Other aspects of the claims included multiple Chapter 93A/176D demands alleging delays and bad-faith settlement practices, including the insurance company filing a complaint for declaratory judgment.
The defendants had private counsel, and each insurance carrier had separate 93A/176D counsel. Multiple adjusters were involved.
One of the insurance carriers settled for $1 million, and the second carrier settled for $750,000.
Action: Negligence and tort
Injuries alleged: Trauma, PTSD, physical pain and suffering
Case name: Withheld
Court/case no.: Withheld
Jury and/or judge: N/A (mediated)
Name of mediator: Retired Judge Daniel Ford
Amount: $1.75 million
Date: Aug. 4, 2023
Attorneys: Stella Xanthakos and Michael Malkovich, of Xanthakos & Malkovich, Northampton (for the plaintiff)
Clinton Mora is a reporter for Trending Insurance News. He has previously worked for the Forbes. As a contributor to Trending Insurance News, Clinton covers emerging a wide range of property and casualty insurance related stories.