Advocates hold an outreach event near Camp Lejeune, N.C. in April 2022, a few months before Congress passed legislation allowing veterans, family members, and others to file claims for exposure to toxic water on the Marine Corps base. Facing an Aug. 10 deadline, hundreds of thousands of Marine Corps veterans, family members, and others have filed claims in one of the biggest toxic exposure cases in the nation’s history.
From 1953 to 1987, tainted water on Camp Lejeune, N.C. was laced with chemicals that have been linked to a host of illnesses, including several forms of cancer and Parkinson’s Disease.
Though some of the toxins were found in the water by the early 1980s, it took years of efforts by a handful of veterans and attorneys, then finally an act of Congress in 2022 to open the two-year window for claims.
Under the law, until that Aug. 10 deadline, those whose illnesses can be linked to the water can file a claim with the Navy seeking a settlement. If they are turned down, don’t get a response within six months, or don’t agree with the government’s settlement offer, they can file suit.
Days before the deadline, more than 320,000 claims had been filed. A Navy spokesman said some are duplicates that will be weeded out.
But more are coming in.
Ed Bell is among hundreds of plaintiffs attorneys in the case. He leads a small team of lawyers appointed by the court to help manage the case, and he was earlier involved in drafting the law that allowed the claims process and lawsuits.
Bell said despite heavy advertising by some attorneys, which has appeared on on television, radio, and online for more than a year, his firm has continued to field queries from potential claimants in the days before the deadline.
“We’ve had a flurry of calls lately," Bell said. “And there is a lot of unknown out there. And while some people complain about the lawyer advertising, sometimes that advertising itself is confusing. So I think there are a lot of people out there that don’t fully appreciate the impact of Aug. 10.”Claims can be filed […]
As the deadline nears, more than 300,000 claims have been filed in the Camp Lejeune toxic water case
