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My question: Can a sworn oath (fraternal oath) be considered a verbal contract, and can someone who divulges secrets from a closed ritual be sued for revealing that information?
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Hm...maybe not.
A freely given promise can never be a contract. A contract is by definition an EXCHANGE of promises. It's my very tentative understanding that many GLOs have language in the oath saying that initiates are freely choosing to undertake the obligation. If so, that's called a gratuitous promise, and it's unenforceable. The oath might be an oral contract IF there were a mutual oath of some kind, where the initiate and a representative of the organization each made promises to one another.
However, every state has a law called the statute of frauds. The statute of frauds says that any contract which cannot be completely performed within a year must be in writing, or it is unenforceable. While a promise to carry a secret to your tomb could theoretically be fulfilled within a year if you died within 364 days, in my state, a lifetime promise is within the statute and cannot be enforced unless it's in writing.
Another problem is that in most states, a contract with a minor is voidable. In other words, if you initiate a 17-year-old, and she enters a contract, upon reaching 18 she can repudiate the contract if she chooses.
The last contract possibility I can think of would be a "promissory estoppel" theory. If A makes a gratuitous promise, and B reasonably relies on that promise to his detriment, A may have to compensate B for his loss. But in this case, it would be really, really hard to prove that B (the GLO) suffers a compensable loss when the secret is revealed. Ritual is not like a trade secret, where competitors will gain an advantage if they know it. Further, would a court hold that it was reasonable of the GLO to expect 200,000 intitiates to keep their mouths shut for 65 years apiece? I think most courts would hold that some leakage is to be expected, and that would prevent recovery under a promissory estoppel theory.
You might attempt some kind of tort (injury) claim. Famous people can sue for invasion of privacy if personal information about them is published and their reputation is injured, even if the info is true. If some part of the published ritual is false, and the former initiate knew it was false, there might be a libel claim. If the initiate was trying to get back at specific individuals in the chapter, you could try suing for intentional infliction of emotional distress. In my opinion, any of these would be a Hail-Mary suit.
In short, in some states you might find a lawyer who'd be willing to try, but my money says you'd lose. Ultimately, this is about trust, not law...you have to hope that the people you choose as your brothers/sisters will keep secrets because they promised to not because you can sue them if they don't.
Ivy, J.D.