Over one million people have lived or worked at Camp Lejeune between the years 1953 and 1987. The problem is, the water there was very contaminated with toxic chemicals during that time. This means that over one million people were exposed to dangerous substances in their water supply. As the Camp Lejeune water contamination lawsuit culminates day by day into the largest class action case the country has ever seen, it is important to know how the lawsuit started and what it entails.
Water Contamination History
To start off, the Camp Lejeune water supply was very contaminated from many sources. The contamination occurred from 1953 until 1987. Throughout the years of contamination, over one million people had been unknowingly using and consuming very harmful chemicals.
As a direct result of all this, many people are suffering; their family members are suffering as well. A large number of these people have been demanding reimbursement for years. These requests were adamantly ignored for the longest time. Very recently, under the Biden administration, the Camp Lejeune Justice Act of 2022 was finally passed. This law promises all victims the compensation and rights that they deserve.
Contamination Lawsuit
The story of the water contamination lawsuit is a complicated one. The first instance of legal action was in 2007. This was eight years after Camp Lejeune officials finally began notifying past residents and veterans of potential health risks in 1999. Many people are claiming that officials intentionally delayed letting people know about the water contamination by concealing the knowledge for years.
The first case that was filed was under the Federal Tort Claims Act. The FTCA is a law that was passed in 1946. It allows private parties to sue the US government in a federal court of law for most torts. This law was passed at a time when citizens (private parties) could not sue the government. The main reason for that was the sovereign immunity doctrine.
However, even though the case was filed under the FTCA, it was still easy for the court to ignore it at the time. That was before many people thought about taking action. The situation did not remain static for much longer, though.
Moving Forward
Since Camp Lejeune is in the public sector, all people filing claims against Camp Lejeune are essentially suing the US government. It soon became harder for the government to ignore the Camp Lejeune cases as they were piling up fast. It soon became a mass tort case in 2009. The MDL went out of its way to dismiss all cases related to the Camp Lejeune lawsuit. Cases were primarily dismissed for the following reasons:
- The state of North Carolina’s statute of repose
- United States Supreme Court Feres Doctrine
- The Discretionary Function Exception
In 2012, though, President Barack Obama signed the “Honoring America’s Veterans and Caring for Camp Lejeune Families Act.” This bill promised health care benefits for veterans and their relatives who were exposed to the contaminated water at Camp Lejeune for years. The bill was signed in 2012, but unfortunately, very little changed even after it was passed.
Veterans who were exposed to the poisoned water at Camp Lejeune also started filing for VA benefits in 2017. However, very few people were taking the cases seriously.
Breakthrough
Just when it looked like all hope was lost, things finally began to look up under the Biden administration. In 2021, the Camp Lejeune case was finally moving faster. Lawmakers were starting to do something about all of the accumulating cases. The House of Representatives and the US Senate have both agreed to pass the Honoring Our PACT Act. As an extension of this, the Camp Lejeune Justice Act of 2022 was also passed.
This is very different than the Honoring America’s Veterans and Caring for Camp Lejeune Families Act of 2012. The Camp Lejeune Justice Act (CLJA), which was passed ten years after the previous act, actually helped victims of water contamination.
The US government has finally addressed the people who have been demanding their rights for decades. By keeping its promise, the government set aside almost 7 billion dollars for the purpose of paying the victims and families of Camp Lejeune.
This is a victory that many are celebrating nationwide. Now, the next step needs to be taken by the people; the law was finally passed, but affected individuals need to take action now by filing their claims. This is also the optimal time to look for a good personal injury or product liability lawyer with experience in mass tort cases.