Since 1955, Scientology has had a policy of using legal threats, and using, also, the legal system, "frivolously," to harass, and "ruin utterly."
Most people who've sued Scientology were, themselves, sued first, then the person counter-sued. All of this costs lots of money, and the person being attacked by the Hubbard "legal harassment" policy is supposed to collapse emotionally or financially, long before the legal process reaches its final stages - in court. Lawsuits cost lots of money, and those attacked by Scientology's "legal harassment" policy, and then counter-suing in defense, often end up borrowing money from friends and supporters, etc. Eventually, as the years pass, these friends and supporters, having their own needs, often want to have their loans repaid. Then, the pressure to settle occurs, and the pressure comes from lawyers, who want to be paid, and from friends and supporters, who, not being independently wealthy, need their own money back for necessities.
It's a messy, difficult, and stressful situation, and expensive, and Scientology plays every angle, like any experienced criminal, they know the legal system and how to "play" it.
Most of the information that has exposed the secretive and exploitative operation of Scientology has become available for public perusal in the face of legal threats and lawsuits, initiated by Scientology, and, in self defense, people sometimes counter-sue, and counter-suing is expensive, and people borrow money, and their lawyers, eventually, want to be paid, and their supporters, eventually, want to be payed back the money they lent, etc. And so there is pressure to "settle."
What has resulted from this, after all is said and done, is much of the information that people use to understand and free themselves from the secretive and manipulative operation called Scientology. Scientology did not want this information available to people.
And it's good that this information is now available for people to see.
Unless one is tiptoeing through the tulips and happily blowing bubbles in a make-believe world, in which case it probably doesn't matter at all.
P.S. In 1982, Miscavige was following Hubbard's orders when attacking, and looting the Missions, and Hubbard's looting of the Missions began, first, in 1978.
Hubbard wanted what he thought was his money.
Miscavige was just doing what was expected of him from his Commodore.
Quoting Martin Samuals, who established the Delphi School in Oregon, and was once the most successful Mission holder:
"Hubbard operated according to a couple of key patterns.
"The first pattern involved basically decent well-intentioned people... No one was able to rise in his organization or in his life to a point of any real proximity to him, without being attacked and vilified.
"That's one pattern repeated over and over. And every time it happened to somebody, Hubbard was always able to explain it away.
"And of course the next person thinks that he or she is immune. Of course, now Hubbard is dead, so we won't see that pattern particularly repeated, except inasmuch as we'll see the Church hierarchy emulate and carry that pattern forward.
"The next pattern: It's reap and rape. Hubbard would let the reins loose. He'd let people believe they could really get on with it. He'd let people believe that they really could prosper to the full extent of their own ability, and enjoy the fruits of their own labor.
"And, with that kind of freedom, prosperity does occur. Inevitably though, he'd then come along and rape and pillage and rip off what had been produced. The most dramatic example of this was 82, 83, when he 'raped' his most decent people in management along with the Mission holders, and looted the entire Mission network.
"And look at this pattern. He surrounded himself with absolute hooligans as 'managers'... surrounded himself with ruthless people - like Miscavige - who got there because he emulated Hubbard's savagery. He emulated his total willingness to completely break, use and discard another person.
"And then after their hands were so bloody - and the only reason their hands were bloody is that they were doing what Hubbard wanted - Hubbard said, "My God, I didn't know!"...
Larry Brennan, radio program:
http://www.forum.exscn.net/showthread.php?t=2398