Judge Wants Quick Resolution, Settlements For Camp Lejeune Lawsuits: Report

With a steadily growing number of Camp Lejeune lawsuits being filed by veterans and family members diagnosed with cancer and other disease allegedly caused by contaminated water at the U.S. Marine base in North Carolina, a federal judge has called for a quick resolution and settlements to be reached, before the judicial system is overwhelmed.

The claims are all being presented under the Camp Lejeune Justice Act (CJLA) of 2022, which was signed into law last August, opening a two year window for lawsuits to be filed by individuals poisoned by water on the base, which was known to be contaminated with toxic chemicals for decades.

In May, a U.S. Navy lawyer estimated that at least 60,000 Camp Lejeune water poisoning claims has already been submitted to the U.S. government, which is required at least 180 days before a lawsuit can be filed, to exhaust administrative remedies and allow the United States to make an offer of settlement.

That report came only a few weeks after a hearing in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina, which has been granted exclusive jurisdiction over the litigation, at which time Judge James Dever indicated it would take the courts more than 1,900 years to try each case, according to a report published this month by the American Homefront Project, which is an independent media initiative that reports on the status and conditions of military veterans in the U.S.

As more U.S. military veterans and other individuals exposed to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune continue to retain lawyers and file claims, the litigation is expected to become the largest mass tort in U.S. history, involving dozens of different injuries allegedly caused by chemicals in the water at the base between the mid 1950s and late 1980s.

During a status conference held in April, Judge Dever made it clear that it was unrealistic for the court to provide each claimant with their day in court, and urged lawyers for the U.S. government to tell the Navy to begin trying to resolve individual claims before they were filed, noting that not a single case had yet to been settled during the 180 day administrative period before lawsuits can be brought in his court, according to the American Homefront Project.

Judge Dever also directed plaintiffs’ attorneys to select representatives to work with the U.S. government on reaching a framework for settlement of Camp Lejeune lawsuits. Days later, the Court established a master docket for the Camp Lejeune litigation and invited plaintiffs lawyers to apply for various leadership positions.

The U.S. District Judge is not the only one putting pressure on the parties to quickly resolve the claims.

In May, a bipartisan group of lawmakers from the U.S. House and Senate demanded an update on Camp Lejeune water poisoning lawsuit settlements, asking why it is taking so long to resolve claims where the government has already admitted fault to military veterans and their family members who have been diagnosed with cancer, Parkinson’s disease and other serious ailments.

Lawmakers pointed out that many of the claimants are continuing to see their health deteriorate, and may die before receiving compensation.

The letter sent by lawmakers demanded that the Navy and Department of Justice provide a detailed Camp Lejeune settlement update this month. It is unclear whether that update has been submitted.

June 2023 Camp Lejeune Water Poisoning Lawsuit Update

Estimates suggest more than a million Marines and their family members were exposed to contaminated Camp Lejeune water between the early 1950s and late 1980s, with some reports suggesting that toxic chemicals from Camp Lejeune may be responsible for more than 50,000 cases of breast cancer, 28,000 cases of bladder cancer, and 24,000 cases of renal cancer, as well as thousands of cases involve Parkinson’s disease and other health complications. It is also believed Camp Lejeune water caused birth defects and wrongful death for thousands of unborn children exposed in utero.

While the U.S. government passed this landmark legislation, the law does not include any automatic right to settlement benefits for veterans and their family members. Rather, each claimant must file a lawsuit and establish that they were exposed to Camp Lejeune water for at least 30 days between August 1953 and December 31, 1987. It is also necessary that they present expert testimony or support to establish that there is a causal relationship between the Camp Lejeune water and injury, or that such a relationship is at least as likely as not.

At this time, Camp Lejeune injury lawyers are reviewing claims for a wide variety of cancers and other complications that may have been caused by the chemicals in the water, including:

Camp Lejeune Cancer Lawsuits:

• Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML)
• Brain Cancer
• Breast cancer
• Bladder cancer
• Central Nervous System Cancer
• Cervical cancer
• Colon Cancer/Colorectal Cancer
• Esophageal cancer
• Hodgkins Lymphoma
• Kidney cancer
• Liver cancer
• Lung cancer
• Ovarian cancer
• Leukemia
• Multiple myeloma
• Non Hodgkin’s Lymphoma
• Prostate Cancer
• Rectal Cancer
• Thyroid Cancer

Other Side Effects Eligible for Camp Lejeune Lawsuit Benefits:

• Parkinson’s disease
• Renal Toxicity/Kidney Disease
• Kidney Damage
• Hepatic steatosis (fatty liver disease)
• Aplastic anemia
• Scleroderma
• Birth defects
• Miscarriage
• Female Infertility
• Multiple Sclerosis (MS)
• Epilepsy (seizures)
• Immune Disorders
• Nerve Damage
• Neurobehavioral effects
• Myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS or Pre-Leukemia)
• Neurobehavioral effects (tremors, lack of coordination, movement or motor problems or other symptoms consistent with undiagnosed Parkinson’s disease)