We have been updating victims on Camp Lejeune since this litigation started.
- Get 2023 Lejeune news and information
November 21, 2022 – Camp Lejeune Lawsuit Scheduling Orders
Court hearings have not been set yet in the legacy Camp Lejeune lawsuits awaiting a ruling on the government’s dismissal motions for failure to submit admin claims to JAG before re-filing.
Meanwhile, the first of many automatic scheduling deadlines is starting to pop up in these cases. Notices recently advised the parties that they have until mid-December to submit joint discovery plans in the legacy cases.
Our lawyers are eager to see the government do something in these toxic water cases besides just collecting claims. Why? We want more tea leaves on how they intend to approach this sprawling litigation.
November 20, 2022 – Lejeune Administrative Process Yet to Take Flight
We still have optimism for early Camp Lejeune settlements. But it will not be in 2022. The JAG Tort Claims Unit will not attempt to settle any Camp Lejeune lawsuits during this administrative phase.
How do we know this? We STILL don’t have a system to send medical records, as we talk about in yesterday’s update. To make settlement offers, JAG would need to review individual cases and verify that the claims are supported by appropriate documentary evidence (e.g., medical records, service records).
JAG needs the staffing to do this. Again, they are not even accepting or reviewing any documents submitted in support of CLJA claims, much less doing the hard work to evaluate a claim to offer a settlement payout. This indicates that JAG won’t be doing much with these claims other than acknowledging them. Victims will wait for the statutory period and then file a water contamination lawsuit.
November 19, 2022 – Getting Records for Camp Lejeune Settlement
Since the CLJA was passed in August, the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) has been bombarded with thousands of requests from veterans (and their families) seeking military service records to support their Camp Lejeune claims.
The large influx of requests has overwhelmed NARA and caused a significant backlog. At the top of NARA’s Military Service Records webpage is a cautionary box titled “Important Notice Regarding the Camp Lejeune Justice Act of 2022.”
The notice explains that CLJA claimants are not required to submit service records supporting their initial claims, but that JAG may request records later. This is an apparent attempt to prepare claimants for a delay when requesting service records in connection with Camp Lejeune.
November 17, 2022 – New Camp Lejeune Claims Update
There is a new information post on the JAG Tort Claims Unit webpage regarding Camp Lejeune claims under the CLJA. The JAG is working on a new electronic submission portal for claimants to use when submitting service records and medical records to support their claims.
The website explains that until this system is set up, JAG will not require or expect CLJA claimants to submit these documents to support their CLJA claims. So this still means that the JAG is not ready to make Camp Lejeune settlement offers yet.
The site also explains what any lawyer handling these cases already knew – the federal agencies handling service records have recently been overwhelmed with Camp Lejeune-related requests resulting in a backlog.
November 16, 2022 – Kidney Cancer Settlement Amounts
We updated our kidney cancer settlement amount projections. Our attorneys included the kidney cancer verdict and settlement payouts in other claims to support our predictions.
November 15, 2022 – Camp Lejeune Legacy Lawsuits Battle Continues
We have been talking about a battle between the government and plaintiffs who already brought a Camp Lejeune lawsuit. Those plaintiffs want to skip filing an administrative complaint and continue their lawsuit.
Does this dispute even matter? Yes and no.
It is hard to understand why the government what to fight a battle with no practical significance. But these plaintiffs have been fighting for a long time for justice. Symbolically, they want to be first. And, practically, they have reason to believe that filing first may put them first in line when a Camp Lejeune suit goes to trial.
(By the way, lawyers have been filing Tier I Camp Lejeune claims first. So, arguably, it is better for everyone else if the government wins the motion because I would rather a Parkinson’s disease case go first than cases chosen because they were already filed many years ago. There may be other arguments to the contrary. But there is no question we want the first case to go to trial to be a strong claim because any verdict will have a bellwether effect on the settlement amounts victims receive. )
Anyway, back to this dispute. The government filed a new brief last week in support of its motion to dismiss the Camp Lejeune legacy cases that were immediately re-filed after the enactment of the CLJA without filing new administrative claims with JAG.
The memorandum filed last Wednesday (in some of the legacy cases) reiterates the simple argument the government has made in support of its motion from the beginning. The memorandum asserts that the JAG claims filed by the legacy plaintiffs before the CLJA was passed don’t count, and these plaintiffs must refile new claims.
This latest brief, however, is supported by a long declaration from the head of the JAG Tort Claims Brach, explaining the factual background of the claims previously submitted to JAG by the legacy plaintiffs.
November 14, 2022 – When Will Your Camp Lejeune Lawsuit Settle?
The recent media and lawyer advertising attention regarding the water contamination at Camp Lejeune has prompted the CDC to initiate a long overdue investigation into possible health risks from other contaminated military sites.
The CDC publicly announced that it was launching a public health study to determine whether former residents of the Fort Ord Army base in California were harmed by exposure to toxic chemicals at the base. Fort Ord was an Army training facility that was closed in 1994 after the EPD named it one of the most polluted sites in the U.S.
November 10, 2022 – U.S. Supreme Court Denies Camp Lejeune Appeal
The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal from one of the initial Camp Lejeune civil lawsuits dismissed in 2016. The appeal challenged the lower court’s decision to use the Feres Doctrine (a rule that blocks military service members from suing the government in some instances) to dismiss the Lejeune cases. The government argued that the passage of the CLJA rendered the issue mute, and the justices agreed.
November 9, 2022 – GUARD Act Update
The so-called GUARD Act is a bill under consideration by Congress that was prompted in direct response to the Camp Lejeune attorney advertising blitz following the passage of the CLJA. The GUARD Act would impose penalties on lawyers for advertising for VA benefits when the VA does not authorize them. The bill was sent to the Veteran’s Affairs Committee and has gone nowhere since. With the mid-terms in the rearview mirror, there is little chance of the bill getting passed before the end of the year.
Ultimately, I don’t think many Camp Lejeune lawyers were pretending to advertise for VA benefits to attract clients looking to file a Camp Lejeune lawsuit. I could be wrong. I don’t see every ad; there have been approximately five million Lejeune television commercials. But I think a big reason the legislation died was the lack of evidence it was anything other than an isolated problem.
November 8, 2022 – Mid-Term Elections Impact on Lejeune Litigation
The mid-term elections are today. Will a power shift in Congress impact your prospects of a Camp Lejeune settlement?
No. The election’s outcome should have no impact whatsoever on how CLJA claims are handled. This litigation is not a Republican or Democrat issue. Both parties equally support (and don’t support) veterans. Everyone wants to make everything partisan politics in 2022. But, despite some political maneuvering on the CLJA before it passed, there is bipartisan support for this legislation.
Also, the Department of Justice has primary authority over settlement offers and valuing injury and wrongful death claims. The DOJ is part of the executive branch, which will not change hands after the election. (And even a new administration really would not change the facts on the ground, anyway.)
November 6, 2022
Last week, a second Petition to Perpetuate Testimony (Nelson v. United States 7:22-cv-186) was filed by a victim of the Camp Lejeune water contamination who is going to die before they can see their CLJA case filed. Mr. Nelson enlisted in the Navy in 1982, and he lived at Camp Lejeune three different times between 1983 and 1986 for training. Nelson lived in the barracks at Camp Geiger, Hadnot Point, and Holcomb Boulevard. In 2018, he was diagnosed with terminal prostate cancer and was recently admitted to hospice care. Nelson seeks to preserve his deposition testimony before he dies to provide critical evidence supporting his anticipated Camp Lejeune lawsuit.
November 5, 2022
We are getting more bullish on Lejeune lung cancer lawsuits. Indeed, these are strong claims if the victim did not smoke. But, increasingly, our attorneys think the lung cancer water contamination lawsuits for smokers may be more viable than we initially thought. We have revised our settlement predictions for these cases. Lung cancer cases are second only to Parkinson’s disease for tour Camp Lejeune clients.
November 3, 2022 – Camp Lejeune Lung Cancer Settlement Projections
We updated our Lejeune lung cancer settlement projections today. Our lawyers think the equipoise bar that lowers the burden of proof required for Camp Lejeune lawsuits could have a meaningful impact on the settlement payouts in these claims.
November 2, 2022 – Camp Lejeune Settlement Scams
Increasingly, we are getting emails, texts, and phone calls from people asking when they can pick up their Camp Lejeune settlement. People are sending banking information to deposit their settlement check. Scammers are using our law firm to lend credibility to their scams.
Camp Lejeune victims should be very cautious about any legal advertising that promises a quick or automatic cash settlement or payout. The new law passed by Congress in August (the Camp Lejeune Justice Act) does not offer immediate cash settlements to victims of Camp Lejeune water contamination victims. The CLJA simply gives Lejeune victims the ability to file a civil lawsuit.
There will be no automatic or quick settlement payouts for people who have never even hired a Camp Lejeune lawyer. Victims will still need to prove that their injuries were related to the Camp Lejeune water and either go to trial or get a settlement offer from the government.
October 31, 2022 – Camp Lejeune Attorneys’ Fees
Our lawyers are getting a lot of questions about attorneys’ fees. Many of our clients were frustrated that some Camp Lejeune lawyers were trying to charge them a contingency fee as high as 45%. Most law firm seems to be charging 40%.
Price should not be the only consideration when hiring an attorney for your Camp Lejeune lawsuit. You need a lawyer with a track record of success and someone who is going to care about you and what you have been through. But when you are comparing the best lawyers, it is something you should consider.
People often see that we are charging a lower contingency fee and ask if they can change lawyers. Ultimately, if you are happy with your lawyer, you should stay with that attorney.
October 30, 2022 – Camp Lejeune Wrongful Death Settlement Predictions Revised
We revised our Camp Lejeune wrongful death settlement amount estimates yesterday. We introduced some new logical underpinnings behind our predictions that will prove either sage or nonsense.
No two pieces of litigation are alike so comps only have so much value. But how the government has historically valued different types of injuries and wrongful death is important. History repeats and settlement payouts the government paid in previous cases for similar injuries and death are instructive in estimating settlement payouts for Camp Lejeune victims.
October 29, 2022 – Normal Burden of Proof Not Necessary for Lejeune Claim
Victims of the Camp Lejeune water contamination who bring claims under the CLJA will face a much easier evidentiary burden for proving causation. To prove causation, the CLJA merely requires claimants to “produce evidence” showing that “a causal relationship is at least as likely as not.” This is referred to as “equipoise” causation and it will be the first time this standard is applied in a civil case.
So what will this mean for your case? It should mean that you won’t have to battle quite as hard to prove that your disease is connected to the Camp Lejeune water even when you may have other risk factors.
This is a big deal. For example, if you were a smoker, it would be very difficult to prove that your lung cancer was caused by the water and not the cigarettes. Under equipoise, however, the contaminated water could be “at least as likely” as the cigarettes to be the cause. This is is a much easier hurdle to win your case.
October 28, 2022 – Easier to Bring a Camp Lejeune Lawsuit
Bringing a Camp Lejeune lawsuit is easier than bringing a typical civil lawsuit. The CLJA adopted a lower evidentiary standard for claimants to prove that their disease was caused by the contaminated water at Camp Lejeune. Under the CLJA, claimants simply need to prove that “a causal relationship is at least as likely as not.”
This is called equipoise causation. So what exactly will this mean for Camp Lejeune victims? In practical terms, it should mean that CLJA claimants will have a higher chance of success regardless of what their alleged health condition is or what risk factors they may have.
October 27, 2022 – Camp Lejeune Wrongful Death Lawsuits
Many of the victims of the Camp Lejeune water contamination have already passed. The CLJA specifically allows for relatives of the deceased victim to bring a Camp Lejeune wrongful death lawsuit. Nearly half of the Lejeune clients our law firm has have wrongful death claims from a family member seeking a settlement or jury payout for the loss of someone they loved.
The one requirement the CLJA imposes is that death claims must be brought by the estate of the deceased victim. The individual with authority to act for an estate is referred to as the personal representative, administrator, or executor (it varies by state).
Anybody can be the personal representative of an estate. Sometimes it is a lawyer. But the personal representative is usually a close family member of the decedent (e.g., surviving spouse, child, etc.). Any settlement proceeds from a death claim get disbursed to the heirs of the decedent just like the assets of the estate.
October 26, 2022 – How Much of a Settlement Demand for a Camp Lejeune Lawsuit?
There has been an evolution in thinking in terms of how much your settlement demand for a Camp Lejeune lawsuit should be.
The initial optimism that the government might offer early settlement amounts has given way to a pragmatic understanding that the government does not yet have a system to put settlement amounts on the table. The JAG Tort Claims Unit in Norfolk received over 6,000 Camp Lejeune administrative claims in the two months.
All plaintiffs are required to file these claims and JAG has 6-months to either accept or resolve them, at which point the plaintiffs can file suit.
There has been a lot of speculation about whether JAG would be making settlement offers on some CLJA cases during this claim period. The conventional wisdom now is that the JAG cannot meaningfully evaluate this many claims in six months. The office handling these claims is understaffed and needs to ramp up to handle the onslaught of Camp Lejeune settlement applications.
Lawyers are submitting Camp Lejeune settlement demands of as much as $50 million in compensation. Why? Small demands are a cap on your settlement or jury payout. (See September 29, 2022 discussion below.) So if there is no chance a real settlement payout will be offered, there is no reason to put a ceiling on your future settlement compensation or jury payout.
October 25, 2022 – Battle Over Camp Lejuene Legacy Lawsuits Continues
Last week, the government filed a motion to dismiss a group of Camp Lejeune lawsuits filed immediately after the CLJA was enacted. An opposition to that motion to dismiss has already been filed in at least one of those cases (Ensminger, et al. v. United States).
The response brief argues that the plaintiffs previously complied with the administrative claim requirement under the CLJA when they submitted claims to JAG under the FTCA before filing their first lawsuits several years back. The response argues the statutory language of the CLJA does not require the plaintiffs to resubmit claims after the passage of the CLJA and such an interpretation would be contrary to the underlying purpose of the statute.
October 24, 2022 – Camp Lejeune Settlement Estimates
We will continue to revise our average per person settlement amount for specific Camp Lejeune lawsuits. Yesterday, we revised upward our predicted settlement for Parkinson’s disease lawsuits.
October 22, 2022 – Looking for Settlement Tea Leaves
On Monday, the government filed its motion to dismiss all of the Camp Lejeune legacy cases that were filed on the day that the CLJA became law.
A second group of six more Lejeune legacy cases were filed the next day. The government has not filed the same motion to dismiss in any of those Camp Lejuene lawsuits. We won’t get a decision on the motion until at least the end of January or later.
Camp Lejeune lawyers are following this closely. The outcome of these cases is of no consequence. But we are looking for tea leaves of how the government will defend these lawsuits and how they will approach settlement.
October 21, 2022 – Camp Lejeune Advertising Backlash
Understandable fatigue over the proliferation of Camp Lejeune lawyer advertising has prompted Congress to begin working on the passage of a new law called the Governing Unaccredited Representatives Defrauding VA Benefits Act (GUARD Act).
The GUARD Act would impose criminal penalties on lawyers who imply in their marketing that they can obtain VA benefits for clients when the lawyer is not authorized by the VA to handle benefit cases. The law is already there but without criminal penalties.
I was unaware anyone was doing this. I have not seen a television ad or anything online that does this. But the compensation for Camp Lejeune lawsuits is fierce and some attorneys are stepping over the line. The law seems unnecessary – this should be an easy job for state bar associations – but it is not hard to understand the frustration.
As much as everyone despises lawyer advertising (especially at the nauseating level we have seen for Camp Lejeune) it serves a vital public service. A large percentage of Camp Lejeune victims might never even know about the CLJA without the attorney ads offering legal assistance (as annoying as they are for the rest of us).
October 20, 2022 – Our Law Firm’s Water Contamination Clients
What are the most common Camp Lejeune water contamination lawsuits?
This is a list of our law firm’s Camp Lejeune lawsuits ranked by how many cases we have for each injury or sickness.
-
- Parkinson’s Disease
- Lung Cancer
- Kidney Cancer
- Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma
- Bladder Cancer
- Prostate Cancer
- Leukemia
- Breast Cancer
- Liver Cancer
- Hepatic Steatosis
- Multiple Myeloma
- Colorectal Cancer
- Other Cancer
- Neurobehavioral
- Miscarriage
- Infertility
- Brain Cancer
- End State Renal Disease
- Renal Toxicity
- Birth Defects
- Aplastic Anemia
- ALS
- Myelodysplastic Syndrome
- Soft Tissue Cancer
- Thyroid Cancer
- Cervical Cancer
- Hodgkin’s Disease
- Cardiac Defects
October 19, 2022 – Government Filed Motion to Dismiss Camp Lejeune Lawsuits
On Monday, lawyers for the federal government filed motions to dismiss all of the Camp Lejeune legacy lawsuits that were dismissed back in 2016 and immediately refiled after the CLJA was passed in August.
The motions argue that these cases must be dismissed. The government contends because the plaintiffs did not satisfy the requirement under the CLJA that they file and exhaust an administrative claim with the Navy JAG before bringing a civil lawsuit. The plaintiffs are going to argue that they already satisfied this requirement when they submitted admin claims to JAG before filing their initial lawsuits several years back.
The government’s view, however, is that those prior administrative contaminated drinking water claims are not relevant because they were filed before the CLJA was enacted. Our lawyers think that the decision on this issue could go either way, but the outcome will have little significance.
Is this a big deal or a little deal? It is a little deal. If the government wins its argument, the legacy plaintiffs will simply have to submit new claims to JAG and then re-file their lawsuits again after JAG denies the claim or 6-months pass without a decision. It is hard to understand the government’s purpose in wanting to delay justice even longer for victims that have already waited so long.
About three-fourths of our cases are injuries that are already deemed presumptively related to the toxic water at Camp Lejeune.
October 18, 2022 – Does It Matter Where You Lived at Lejeune?
The water contamination at Camp Lejeune occurred in three areas: Hadnot Point, Tarawa Terrace, and Holcomb Boulevard.
The Hadnot Point area was occupied by barracks and bachelor housing units. Tarawa Terrace was the family housing area, and Holcomb Boulevard featured the hospital, family housing, and other amenities.
Some have suggested that victims who did not live or work in one of these three areas do not qualify to bring a claim under the CLJA. We do not think Camp Lejeune water contamination lawsuits will be fought in these weeds.
The CLJA allows claims by anyone who lived or worked at “Camp Lejeune” with specific reference to these three locations. Why? Because everyone living or working at Lejeune was likely exposed to the contaminated water regardless of where they lived on base.
October 17, 2022 – Is There Settlement Money Set Aside to Pay Camp Lejeune Lawsuits?
Over 6,000 CLJA claims have already been brought by Camp Lejeune victims and it has only been two months since the new law was passed. Is there enough money to compensate all of the victims.
There is a $6.7 billion number a lot of law firm websites are talking about. This number is wrong and it is our fault. We put that number out before the CLJA passed and everyone copied it. The real number that has been set aside appears to be more like $22 billion when you put it all together.
But this is not a Camp Lejeune settlement payout fund. There is no set-aside fund to pay Camp Lejeune settlements. But this estimate is a clear indication that the government is prepared to pay full settlement compensation to Camp Lejeune victims who file meritorious claims.