“Barracks lawyers” on Facebook have been working overtime since the Camp Lejeune Justice Act was signed into law.
Like the barracks lawyers you remember from active duty (salty Lance Corporal types who had been busted down multiple times and would offer “legal advice” at the smoke pit), many of the folks posting so passionately online have no legal training and have never even read the Camp Lejeune Justice Act.
MJA has devoted its entire law practice to representing active-duty service members and veterans and is committed to dispelling misinformation surrounding the Camp Lejeune Justice Act. Our attorneys ALL served on active duty in the United States Marine Corps and are committed to helping Marines and their families get the recovery or treatment they deserve.
Contact us today to speak with one of our Marine veteran attorneys to see if you qualify.
WHO IS MILITARY JUSTICE ATTORNEYS (MJA)?
Military Justice Attorneys (MJA) is a veteran owned and operated law firm that focuses on representing active-duty service members and veterans in administrative, criminal, and civil matters related to their military service.
WHY IS MJA INVOLVED IN THIS LITIGATION?
At MJA, ALL our attorneys were active-duty Marines. And so were our brothers, uncles, grandfathers, and closest friends. We, too, had family members stationed at Camp Lejeune during the affected period who drank the water. To us, this is personal.
For decades, the drinking water at Camp Lejeune was contaminated by harmful chemicals. MJA understands what it means to be a Marine and will aggressively fight to get Marines and their loved ones the treatment or recovery they deserve.
WHAT IS THE CAMP LEJEUNE JUSTICE ACT OF 2022?
The Camp Lejeune Justice Act is a federal law that allows qualified individuals to sue and bring an action in federal court to recover damages from exposure to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina between August 1, 1953 and December 31, 1987. Qualified individuals include veterans and their families, civilian employees who worked on base, or the legal representative of such an individual.
DO I QUALIFY FOR RECOVERY UNDER THE CAMP LEJEUNE JUSTICE ACT?
To be eligible for a claim you must have:
- Lived or worked at Camp Lejeune or MCAS New River between August 1, 1953 and December 31, 1987;
- Lived or worked there at least thirty (30) cumulative days during that period; and
- Have been diagnosed with or experienced a qualifying medical condition.
WHAT MEDICAL CONDITIONS QUALIFY UNDER THE ACT?
The Camp Lejeune Justice Act does not specify which medical conditions will qualify for recovery. However, the VA had identified a number of “presumptive” conditions known to be related to the toxic water at Camp Lejeune. These are:
- Adult leukemia
- Aplastic anemia and other myelodysplastic syndromes
- Bladder cancer
- Kidney cancer
- Liver cancer
- Multiple myeloma (cancer in the white blood cells / plasma cells)
- Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma
- Parkinson’s disease
The VA also identified a larger list of conditions which may receive coverage. This list includes, but is not limited to:
- Bladder cancer
- Breast cancer
- Esophageal cancer
- Female infertility
- Hepatic steatosis (fatty liver disease)
- Kidney cancer
- Leukemia
- Lung cancer
- Miscarriage
- Multiple myeloma (cancer in the white blood cells / plasma cells)
- Myelodysplastic syndromes
- Neurobehavioral effects
- Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma
- Renal toxicity
- Scleroderma (systemic sclerosis)
Other cancers and severe medical conditions not currently identified by the VA could still form the basis for a claim. Under the Camp Lejeune Justice Act, claimants are required to prove the relationship between exposure to the water at Camp Lejeune and the harm claimed. In other words, the claimant must prove that exposure to the toxic chemicals caused the health condition. This is known a “specific causation.”
IS THIS A SCAM?
No, it’s not a scam. The Camp Lejeune Justice Act is a real law that waives sovereign immunity (legal doctrine that says you can’t sue the government) and creates a federal cause of action to allow qualified individuals to file a claim and ultimately a lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina.
CAN’T I JUST FILE WITH THE VA TO GET THE SAME BENEFITS?
No, the Camp Lejeune Justice Act is not about VA benefits. Those harmed by contaminated water at Camp Lejeune have been able to apply for VA healthcare benefits since 2012.
The Camp Lejeune Justice Act goes beyond VA benefits and creates a federal cause of action to allow injured parties to bring a claim and ultimately a federal lawsuit for monetary damages in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina.
MJA encourages anyone who believes they may be injured to file a claim with the VA for benefits. However, please understand that the Camp Lejeune Justice Act creates a separate avenue for relief by allowing injured parties to bring an action in federal court. This is historic!
HAS THERE BEEN A CAMP LEJEUNE JUSTICE ACT SETTLEMENT?
No, there has not been any large-scale settlement agreement to date. Individuals impacted by contaminated water must bring a federal claim and/or lawsuit where they prove causation of their injuries and damages.
WHY WOULD I HIRE AN ATTORNEY? CAN’T I JUST FILE THROUGH THE VA OR DAV?
Veteran services organizations are a great resource for those who simply wish to apply for VA healthcare benefits. That is not, however, the purpose of the Camp Lejeune Justice Act.
Attorneys in this litigation will be responsible for investigating claims, obtaining military and medical records, identifying other supporting evidence, engaging medical and scientific experts to evaluate potential claims and prove causation, calculating individual damages, filing tort claims, and ultimately filing and trying civil lawsuits in federal court. Attorneys can also look at your individual case to determine what, if any, impact a recovery could have on other disability awards, payments, or benefits.
MJA is not aware of any veteran service organization that will be filing federal lawsuits for damages under the Camp Lejeune Justice Act of 2022.
CONTACT US TODAY
MJA has devoted its entire law practice to representing active-duty service members and veterans and will aggressively fight for Marines and their families who were harmed by contaminated water at Camp Lejeune. Contact us today to speak with one of our Marine veteran attorneys to see if you qualify.
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