Nationwide — Former Los Angeles Lakers star and coach Byron Scott has filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, putting a civil trial over a sexual assault lawsuit on hold. The case involves allegations from Hayley Dylan, who says Scott sexually assaulted her when she was 15 years old in 1987. He acknowledges that they had sexual contact but denies that he assaulted her.
He filed for bankruptcy on Sept. 4 in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Central District of California. According to the Los Angeles Times, the filing automatically paused Dylan’s lawsuit, meaning the civil case cannot move forward unless the bankruptcy court allows it to continue. The trial had originally been scheduled for Sept. 8 but was later moved to Oct. 12 because of a scheduling conflict. The new bankruptcy filing now prevents the trial from moving ahead as planned.
The bankruptcy filing lists Scott’s assets at $50,000 or less and his debts at between $1 million and $10 million. He identified the debt as “alleged tort liability,” referring to potential financial claims connected to alleged wrongdoing. The filing does not determine whether Dylan’s allegations are true. It also does not explain why Scott decided to file for bankruptcy at this stage of the lawsuit.
Dylan’s lawsuit says Scott sexually assaulted her in a janitor’s closet at Campbell Hall School in 1987. She was 15 at the time, while Scott was 26. Scott has acknowledged that sexual contact occurred but disputes Dylan’s account of what happened. He says he believed she was 18 and thought she was part of a video production crew rather than a student at the school.
Dylan’s attorney, Kerry Garvis Wright, objected strongly to the bankruptcy filing and said her legal team plans to ask the bankruptcy court to remove the automatic stay. Wright described the filing as a “pathetic and cowardly” attempt to keep Dylan from presenting her case to a jury. That statement reflects the attorney’s view and does not establish Scott’s reason for filing bankruptcy. Scott’s attorney did not respond to a Los Angeles Times request for comment.
The lawsuit also named Campbell Hall as a defendant, but the school reached a confidential settlement with Dylan in August. That left Scott as the remaining defendant in the case. With the bankruptcy filing now stopping the civil proceedings, Dylan’s legal team must first challenge the stay before the sexual assault allegations can potentially reach a jury. The dispute remains unresolved, and Scott continues to deny that he sexually assaulted Dylan.