If you served at North Carolina’s Camp Lejeune, you probably know that many veterans and their families have hired a North Carolina Camp Lejeune claim lawyer to fight for their rights after they were exposed to hazardous and deadly toxins discovered in the camp’s drinking water.
More than one million U.S. Marines, sailors, civilians, and their loved ones were exposed to contaminated drinking water at Camp Lejeune. Thanks to the PACT Act of 2022, those who were injured by exposure to the dangerous drinking water may now seek justice.
What is the Government Offering?
In September 2023, the Department of Justice and the Department of the Navy offered several settlement options for resolving the personal injury claims of those who were exposed to toxic drinking water at Camp Lejeune from 1953 through 1987. The settlement offers include:
- from $150,000 to $450,000 for victims of kidney, liver, or bladder cancer, leukemia, and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma
- from $150,000 to $400,000 for the victims of kidney disease, Parkinson’s, multiple myeloma, and systemic sclerosis or scleroderma
- another $100,000 for wrongful death survivors
However, it’s likely that many of those who are bringing injury claims based on Camp Lejeune water contamination qualify to receive settlements that are far more generous than the settlement amounts that are now being offered by the government.
What Happened to Camp Lejeune’s Drinking Water?
Camp Lejeune, a large and active base on North Carolina’s Atlantic Coast, like many bases before the 1980s, discharged oil and other contaminants into its storm drains. A nearby dry cleaner also dumped tetrachloroethylene-tainted wastewater into the drains for many years.
From 1953 until the 1980s, the water treatment plants at Camp Lejeune were contaminated by hazardous chemicals including benzene, trichloroethylene, perchloroethylene, tetrachloroethylene, and vinyl chloride.
The Camp Lejeune water contamination story made headlines in 2022 after the PACT Act took effect. The PACT Act allows veterans and their loved ones to recover compensation if they were exposed to Camp Lejeune’s contaminated drinking water.
Who May File a Claim?
Under the PACT Act (PACT stands for “Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics”), veterans and their loved ones may bring a claim against the Navy if they were at Camp Lejeune for at least thirty days between the years 1953 and 1987, and if they have been subsequently diagnosed with a medical condition such as:
- hepatic steatosis or myelodysplastic syndromes
- lung, bladder, breast, kidney, or esophageal cancer
- non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, leukemia, or multiple myeloma
- female infertility or miscarriage
- scleroderma, renal toxicity, or other neurobehavioral deficits
The act also allows the surviving family members of a Camp Lejeune water contamination victim to bring a wrongful death claim against the government.
The PACT Act: What Does It Provide?
The PACT Act provides two years for Camp Lejeune’s water contamination victims and wrongful death survivors to take legal action. More than a year has already gone by. Your claim must be filed before August 10, 2024.
Should you file an injury or wrongful death claim under the PACT Act, you’ll need to gather test results, medical bills, and service records that show you or a member of your family lived at the camp between 1953 and 1987 and received a diagnosis for one of the conditions listed above.
With the deadline rapidly approaching, anyone who qualifies to file an injury claim arising from water contamination at Camp Lejeune needs to contact an attorney at once. A North Carolina Camp Lejeune claim attorney will file your claim and help gather the documents that you’ll need.
What Steps Should You Take?
The PACT Act has opened the door for veterans and their loved ones to seek justice after exposure to the toxic water at Camp Lejeune. For decades, North Carolina’s statute of limitations disqualified claims that were filed more than ten years after the exposure.
Your claim lawyer will help you prove your losses and damages – medical bills and lost wages along with suffering and personal pain – and calculate the amount of compensation you may recover. After you have filed your claim, the Navy will have 180 days to approve or deny it.
Should your claim be denied, your lawyer will take your claim to federal court and fight for the justice you need. In court, your North Carolina Camp Lejeune claim lawyer will seek the total amount of compensation that you are entitled to by the PACT Act.
What Will Justice Cost?
If you’re a victim of cancer or another serious medical condition as a result of contaminated water at Camp Lejeune, your medical costs may be overwhelming, and you may believe you can’t pay for a lawyer’s help. However, there’s no need for finances to stand in your way.
Your North Carolina Camp Lejeune claim attorney will handle your water contamination case on a contingent fee basis. You will pay no lawyer’s fee upfront and no lawyer’s fee until your Camp Lejeune lawyer recovers your compensation with a trial verdict or a settlement.
Should you fail – for any reason – to win compensation, you won’t owe any fee to a lawyer. The justice process starts with a free, no-obligation evaluation and review of your case. You’ll receive specific, personalized legal advice about moving ahead with your water contamination claim.
This can’t be emphasized strongly enough: The final day for bringing an injury claim based on water contamination at Camp Lejeune is August 10, 2024. If you’re a victim or a wrongful death survivor, speak to an injury attorney now and start gathering the documentation you’ll need.
Who Should Handle Your Claim?
Your attorney will need at least several weeks to review your case and develop an effective legal strategy. If you or anyone you love has experienced a severe medical condition after water contamination exposure at Camp Lejeune, call the Frost Law Firm without delay.
Former Judge Advocate and personal injury lawyer Scott L. Frost has more than twenty three years of experience prevailing on behalf of the injured victims of negligence. Frost Law Firm is an award-winning team of attorneys who represent personal injury victims in North Carolina and throughout the U.S.
Frost Law Firm has recovered millions for our personal injury clients. Call our offices now – from wherever you are in the U.S. – at 866-FROST-WINS to find out more or to begin the personal injury process, and don’t forget – you pay no lawyer’s fee until you are compensated.
