Products Liability
Below are Camp Lejeune lawsuit updates. These are not all of the updates or the most recent updates. To the latest news, go back to our main page Camp Lejeune Lawsuit page for February news and updates and more.
September 4, 2023: DOJ Slowdown
Despite the fact that Congress passed the CLJA with the clear intent of compensating victims of Camp Lejeune, the DOJ wants to slow the path to trial as much as possible. In the recent joint report submitted to the court, the plaintiffs explained that the DOJ in claiming that the Lejeune cases are “immature” torts and need to be slow walked through the litigation process.
There is nothing new or immature about the injuries caused by the toxic water at Camp Lejeune. But the DOJ wants to settle most of these claims before these lawsuits go to trial. There will almost certainly be substantial multimillion dollar verdicts pushing more plaintiffs to hold out. So, the DOJ wants to slow-walk the litigation while the mechanisms are implemented to make Camp Lejeune settlement offers.
September 1, 2023 – Leadership Battle
After an exhaustive review of many candidates, the federal judges overseeing the Camp Lejeune lawsuits unanimously selected lawyers to lead the litigation for the victims of Camp Lejeune’s toxic water exposure.
One lawyer objected. He asserts that the Court cannot appoint leadership without designating the case as Multidistrict Litigation (MDL).
The leadership has pushed back. It points out that for over six decades, federal courts have leaned on the Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 42(a) to designate lead counsel in multifaceted cases. The Manual for Complex Litigation also supports such appointments even with an MDL class action designation.
the appointed leadership argues that although Congress expected numerous claims from the widespread exposure at Camp Lejeune, it did not prescribe a specific management method, leaving it to the judgment of these same judges who made the call to set up this leadership structure.
This motion to upend leadership will not succeed. If it did, it would only slow down the path to Camp Lejeune settlements.
August 30, 2023 – Parties Submit Alternative Case Management Proposals
In the first significant filing in the consolidated Camp Lejeune class action, the plaintiffs and the government have submitted alternative proposals for how the pending cases should be grouped for discovery and trial. Both sides agree that the cases should be grouped into “tracks” based on the disease alleged by the plaintiff. What they disagree on is what specific diseases should be included in Track 1.
This is a big deal. Track 1 will be on “track” to get the first settlement payouts. The government only wants to include three diseases in Track 1: kidney cancer, leukemia, and Parkinson’s disease. The plaintiffs are pushing for Track 1 to include 5 diseases: kidney cancer, bladder cancer, leukemia, Parkinson’s disease and lymphoma.
The fact that both proposals include leukemia, kidney cancer, and Parkinson’s disease is a very strong indication of what types of claims are viewed as the strongest. These are the diseases that have the strongest evidence connecting them to contaminated water at Lejeune.
August 18, 2023 – 1,100 CLJA Civil Cases Now Pending
Over the last 30 days, only 41 new civil cases have been filed under the CLJA by victims of the Camp Lejeune water contamination. That brings pushes the current total of pending CLJA civil cases past 1,100. The volume of new Camp Lejeune civil lawsuits filed over the summer has been drastically lower than the rate of new filings that we saw in the spring, when over 600 new cases were filed in March alone.
August 17, 2023 – Assumption of the Risk
One of the affirmative defense the government has asserted in Camp Lejeune lawsuits is:
“To the extent that the evidence shows that Plaintiff voluntarily assumed the risks of the occasion, any recovery is barred by Plaintiff’s assumption of risk.”
Some Marines and their families are understandably losing their minds over this defense. How can you assume a risk when you are unaware of that risk?
But you have to assert affirmative defenses in the answer to the lawsuit or you may waive the right later bring that defense. So the JAG is just throwing out all of the form defenses. Is it a frivolous defense? Absolutely. But it is not something to take seriously.
August 14, 2023 – Camp Lejeune Wrongful Death Cases Increase
It has now been more than 1 year since Congress passed the CLJA to give compensation to victims of the Camp Lejeune water contamination. CNN released a news story yesterday about the sluggish pace of the claims process for victims of the Camp Lejeune water contamination. The story notes that a growing number of Camp Lejeune claims are turning into wrongful death cases as the process continues to drag on.
August 13, 2023 – Navy Statement on Camp Lejeune Settlements
This is the statement: “The Department of the Navy (DON) remains committed to addressing the claims of our Service Members, civilian employees, their families, and others who may have been harmed by exposure to contaminated water at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune. Over 80,000 claims [note: the actual number appears to be 93,000 now] have been filed under the Camp Lejeune Justice Act of 2022 (CLJA), and the Navy has initiated processing of more than 17,000 claims. We are pursuing information technology solutions to improve claims processing, and a new unit with a projected staff of over 100 claims professionals was established within the Navy’s Office of the Judge Advocate General to focus solely on adjudicating CLJA claims. The Department of Justice and the Department of Navy are working to develop an early-resolution framework for the CIJA claims. This framework will supplement other mechanisms for resolving claims currently available through the normal administrative claims process or litigation and will provide a voluntary, expedited option for those interested. Our aim is that this framework will be finalized soon so that those impacted can quickly receive relief” (our emphasis added).
August 1, 2023 – Joint Status Report Submitted
A few days ago, the government and the plaintiffs in the Camp Lejeune consolidated litigation submitted their first joint status report. Aside from updating the court on the status of the plaintiffs’ leadership committees, the parties also requested that the court issue an across-the-board extension to September 1, 2023 of individual deadlines in all pending Camp Lejeune cases. The extension will give the parties time to submit a global case management order, which is due by the end of August.
July 31, 2023 – Lawsuit Pace Slows in July
In July, only 39 new Camp Lejeune claimants have opted to file civil lawsuits under the CLJA. This means that July will be the slowest month for Lejeune lawsuits. Over 700 Camp Lejeune civil lawsuits were filed in the first two months after the earliest claimants became eligible, with 693 filed in March alone. Since then, however, we have seen a rapid slowdown in the volume of new filings.
Based on administrative claim information from JAG, we know that at least 15,000 CLJA claimants have already become time-eligible to convert their claims into civil lawsuits.
Many claimants are content waiting on the sidelines to see how things play out in the civil litigation or hoping that JAG will start processing administrative claims for settlement.
July 21, 2023 – Lejeune Lawyers Accused of Violating TCPA
A few law firms are being sued for violating the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) for a robocall marketing campaign targeting potential Camp Lejeune claimants. Earlier this week, a federal judge ruled that the plaintiffs’ claims under the TCPA against two firms in West Va. could move forward and rejected a motion to dismiss filed by the law firms. Another almost identical lawsuit was filed this week in New York alleging that a different firm violated the TCPA in its efforts to find Camp Lejeune plaintiffs.
July 17, 2023 – Over 1,000 Camp Lejeune Cases Filed
There are now 1,067 Camp Lejeune lawsuits pending in the Eastern District of North Carolina. That is more than last year’s total number of civil cases filed in that district. Most of these cases were filed in the first 2-3 months after the eligibility deadline, while the recent monthly average has been about 100.
June 27, 2023 – Government Defenses Allowed
U.S. District Judge Terrence W. Boyle ruled yesterday that the federal government could maintain its affirmative defenses against allegations that water contamination at the Camp Lejeune Marine base led to people being poisoned. Judge Boyle noted that any perceived vagueness in these defenses was a direct consequence of deficiencies and lack of specifics in the plaintiffs’ complaints, leading to what he described as the government’s ‘overpleading’ of defenses. Despite objections from the plaintiffs who described the government’s defenses as insufficient and against civil procedure rules, the court allowed the government’s defenses to stand.
Judge Boyle highlighted that the plaintiffs could request the dismissal of these defenses later in the litigation if they are deemed insufficient. In defending itself, the government claimed that the contamination could have been caused by a dry cleaner and argued that it shouldn’t be held entirely financially responsible for any injuries. These defenses were presented in response to 122 cases heard at the recent hearing, all of which were filed in March and met with the government’s response in May. The plaintiffs’ request to dismiss the defenses was only made this month.
June 22, 2023 – Plaintiffs Seek Dismissal of Government Defenses
In a court hearing, over 120 plaintiffs accused the U.S. government of providing unsatisfactory and simplistic defenses in response to lawsuits regarding alleged water poisoning at the Camp Lejeune Marine base. The plaintiffs’ attorneys filed a Motion to Dismiss asking the court to throw out these defenses. They criticized the government’s responses as speculative and lacking substance. The JAG’s answers seem to forget that they are not technically negligence claims, but suits based solely on the Camp Lejeune Justice Act. The government defended its vague responses, arguing that the lack of specificity in the lawsuits made such answers necessary.
June 21, 2023 – DOJ Pushes for Expedited Process
The U.S. Department of Justice has urged federal judges managing the water contamination litigation at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune to expedite their case management strategy. The need for swift action stems from the sheer volume of lawsuits arising from the contaminated drinking water at the North Carolina base. With no collective case management plan in place, the government faces a tight deadline to file individual responses to 663 separate lawsuits. In total, close to 1,000 lawsuits have been filed so far, marking this one of the largest mass litigations in history. The four judges handling these lawsuits agreed on a consolidation plan and called for proposals on its implementation. However, one judge, Terrence Boyle, has decided to proceed with his cases, which is great but it is also creating tension with the other judges who have put the brakes on litigation as usual. Meanwhile, as the court deliberates on the consolidation, the government has filed responses in 198 suits and has been in communication with approximately 11 plaintiff Camp Lejeune law firms representing over 180 plaintiffs.
June 19, 2023 – Pace of Lawsuits Slowing Down
In the four months since the earliest Camp Lejeune claimants became eligible to file a water contamination lawsuit, 1,018 civil lawsuits have been filed under the CLJA by Lejeune victims and their families.
The pace of CLJA civil lawsuits has slowed down dramatically over the last six weeks. Only 19 cases have been filed so far in June and 94 total cases were filed in May. Over 800 Camp Lejeune civil lawsuits were filed in March. Why? Camp Lejeune lawyers are more focused on getting as many cases filed administratively as possible. There have been 65,000 Camp Lejeune administrative claims filed. Our law firm expects that number to double. Some estimates are much higher.
June 7, 2023 – Lejeune Lawyers Accused of Unlawful Client Solicitation
Accused of illegal client solicitation in toxic water contamination lawsuits at Camp Lejeune, two law firms have requested a West Virginia federal judge to dismiss a proposed class action. Based in Maryland and Florida, the firms deny initiating or controlling calls to potential clients on a federal do-not-call list. They argue for dismissal due to a lack of jurisdiction, among other reasons. The plaintiff claimed the firms, a Minnesota-based services group, and five unnamed defendants targeted individuals on the do-not-call list to drum up business for a mass tort against the federal government.
We cannot speak to the merits of this particular class action lawsuit. But there is no question that lawyers and marketing companies went way overboard in marketing for Camp Lejeune in a way that was not a good look for Camp Lejeune lawyers.
May 30, 2023 – 60,000 Claims
The estimated number of Camp Lejeune claims is up to an estimated 60,000.
May 25, 2023 – Navy Blames Budget and Staffing Limitations for Slow Response
The Navy claims it is facing financial and staffing limitations in reviewing compensation claims from veterans affected by toxic water at Camp Lejeune. Navy attorney Jennifer Tennile Karnes acknowledged this in an email to Camp Lejeune lawyers, mentioning that the tort claims unit is working extensive overtime to process claims and aims to increase staff by the end of summer. However, the Navy has not yet delivered its promise to create an online portal to expedite the claims process, and Congress has not allocated additional funds for managing the compensation program. Here is an apt quote from the Navy: “So where does that leave us? Well, back to the same ole place we have been this entire time. Building the plane in mid-air.”
May 17, 2023 – Pressure for Camp Lejeune Settlement Mounts
A bipartisan coalition of lawmakers is increasing pressure on the Navy for failing to resolve cases of toxic water poisoning at the Camp Lejeune Marine Base, nine months after President Biden signed a bill to establish a process for addressing veterans’ health claims.
None of the approximately 45,000 claims had been settled by the Navy. Furthermore, a digital platform meant to process these claims won’t be operational until summer. How do you settle lawsuits without knowing what the claims even are?
Senators Ted Budd (R-N.C.), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), and Representative Matt Cartwright (D-Pa.) are urging for an expedited resolution of these cases. In a letter sent to Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro and Attorney General Merrick Garland, they argue that any delay in adjudicating these claims amounts to an injustice. The lawmakers asked six key questions in their letter:
- “How many Camp Lejeune claims has the Navy Judge Advocate General received? Please provide a detailed status of each including current disposition.”
- “How many Camp Lejeune lawsuits have been filed in federal court since 2022? Please provide a detailed status of each including current procedural posture.”
- “How many individuals with pending Camp Lejeune claims have died while waiting for a resolution to their case?”
- “What are the Department of the Navy and the Department of Justice’s plans to process these claims in a timely manner?”
- “What are DOJ’s guidelines for resolving these cases?”
- “Will cases brought in federal court be litigated by lawyers from DOJ headquarters or by lawyers in the Office of the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina?”
May 11, 2023 Update – May 2023 Lawsuit Pace
Since the start of May, 37 new Camp Lejeune civil cases under the CLJA have been filed in the Eastern District of North Carolina.
That works out to a daily average of just over three new cases per day, which is almost exactly the same daily case average we saw in April. Assuming this pace continues, we should get just over 100 new Camp Lejeune cases by the end of the month.
However, this pace is significantly down from the volume we saw in March when 642 new civil cases were filed under the CLJA. But there are 45,000 administrative claims, many of which will be filed soon. So there will be an onslaught at some point.
May 9, 2023 Update – Navy Slow to Process Camp Lejeune Claims
Despite the government’s promise to compensate veterans affected by toxic waters at Camp Lejeune, no claim has been settled almost nine months later. The Navy is waiting to launch an online portal to manage over 45,000 claims and counting. But now the Navy says – to the frustration of veterans – that a portal to process claims might not be ready until the summer. Bloomberg has an article on the problems the Navy has putting together a portal to process thousands of Camp Lejeune claims that have been filed administratively. “The Navy needs to step up its game,” North Carolina Federal Court Judge James C. Dever III told lawyers at a hearing last month.
May 5, 2023 Update – 45,000 claims
There have been 45,000 administrative claims filed in the Camp Lejeune litigation.
May 1, 2023 Update – Camp Lejeune Class Action
We don’t have an MDL Camp Lejeune class action lawsuit. But we now have something close. The court has consolidated all of the cases for pretrial discovery.
April 20, 2023 Update – Court Grants DOJ Extension Request
The Department of Justice filed a motion to extend the time to file answers to each individual plaintiff’s complaint. It is not hard to answer a complaint. But there are a lot of them, and the DOJ is overwhelmed. A judge has granted an extension on filing individual answers until May 31, 2023.
The Eastern District of North Carolina still needs to establish coordination protocols in the Camp Lejeune lawsuits. But it is likely coming. Camp Lejeune lawyers on both sides filed a joint motion to consolidate the litigation, asking that the cases all be assigned to one judge for pretrial proceedings. The attorneys also want the judges to establish protocols to help advance the litigation with as little unnecessary duplication of efforts as possible. During a recent status conference, U.S. District Judge James C. Dever III discussed the possibility of establishing a master docket and assigning plaintiffs’ attorneys to certain leadership positions just like you see in an ordinary MDL class action lawsuit. What the court will do and how far it will go with consolidation remains to be seen.
April 19, 2023 Update – Acccelation of Pace of Camp Lejeune Suit in North Carolina
854 new Camp Lejeune civil lawsuits have been filed under the CLJA so far, with over 600 cases filed in just the last 30 days. The Eastern District of North Carolina is averaging over 20 new Camp Lejeune filings daily. Meanwhile, the DOJ has filed a motion asking for an extension of its deadline to file answers to the new CLJA cases pending a decision on the recent motion to consolidate.
April 10, 2023 Update: Will There Be a Camp Lejeune Class Action Lawsuit?
With the swift rise in Camp Lejeune water contamination lawsuits being filed in the Eastern District of North Carolina, lawyers for both the U.S. government and plaintiffs are advocating for consolidating cases under a single judge or the Court overseeing pretrial proceedings in a unified fashion. Although not an actual class action lawsuit, this approach would encompass many characteristics of one. We have updated our Lejeune settlement page with this update in terms of the timing of a possible settlement.
April 4, 2023 Update – Number of Filed Lawsuits Jump
The volume of new Camp Lejeune civil lawsuit filings in the Eastern District of North Carolina exploded last week with 360 Camp Lejeune victims filing CLJA lawsuits over the week. Two hundred thirty-two of these CLJA civil cases were filed on a single day, Friday, March 31, 2023. If this continues, we will see about 1,500 new Camp Lejeune civil cases filed each month, which would give us over 12,000 by the end of the year.
March 28, 2023 Update – Lawsuit Count
Camp Lejeune victims who filed administrative claims with JAG after the CLJA was passed last August became eligible to file civil lawsuits six months afterward. It has now been almost eight months since the CLJA was passed.
Last week we saw a spike in the volume of new Camp Lejeune civil lawsuits getting filed. In just five days last week, 179 new Camp Lejeune civil lawsuits were filed in the Eastern District of North Carolina. That is the most significant weekly volume of new filings since the six-month deadline on the JAG claims expired. It also nearly doubles the total number of CLJA civil cases pending.
March 27, 2023 Update – JAG Mentions Settlement
The Navy JAG has received harsh criticism recently for its apparent lack of action on the thousands of Camp Lejeune claims filed under the new law passed last year. Despite receiving over 15,000 claims already, JAG still needs to implement a system for reviewing and/or resolving the claims.
In response to a recent media inquiry, a spokesperson for JAG suggested that they are reviewing claims and that “if the Navy determines the evidence substantiates the claim, the Navy, in coordination with the Department of Justice, may offer a settlement.” This is certainly encouraging to hear, but no settlement offers have been made to any Camp Lejeune victims and no timetable was offered.
March 20, 2023 Update – 260 Lawsuits and Climbing
It has now been over one month since the first Camp Lejeune victims who filed claims under the CLJA became eligible to file civil lawsuits. Since then, 260 CLJA claimants have converted their claims into civil lawsuits in the Eastern District of North Carolina. The volume of new Camp Lejeune lawsuits filed under the CLJA has nearly doubled each week since the start of March.
March 6, 2023 Update – Case Count Update
Camp Lejeune victims have filed twenty-two more civil lawsuits in the Eastern District of North Carolina since the start of March. That brings the total number of pending CLJA civil suits up to 179.
March 1, 2023 Update – New Case Highlights Lejeune Tragedy
A recently filed CLJA civil lawsuit, Freshwater v. United States (7:23-cv-00167), highlights the tragic circumstances of many Camp Lejeune victims. Plaintiff lived at Camp Lejeune for at least 30 days (the Complaint does not specify exactly how long) during the water contamination period. Mary’s exposure to the toxic water at Lejeune had a devastating impact on her lifelong health. She had two children who died from birth defects in 1977 and 1979 and a miscarriage. Mary was subsequently diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia, and she passed away in 2013, leaving her daughter to file wrongful death claims under the CLJA. Birth defects and leukemia are conditions presumptively linked to the Lejeune water. Just unfair.
February 27, 2023 Update – 158 and Counting
The earliest CLJA claimants became eligible to file civil lawsuits on February 10, 2023, six months after their JAG claims were filed under the new law. Since then, 158 Camp Lejeune lawsuits have been filed in the Eastern District of North Carolina under the CLJA. This represents only a tiny fraction of the number of claims filed in the first two weeks after the CLJA was passed, so the volume of civil case filings will probably increase dramatically over the next few months.
February 22, 2023 Update – Government Encourages Victims to Make Two Claims
The Department of Veteran’s Affairs is urging Camp Lejeune victims to file claims for VA disability benefits, even if they are pursuing a claim under the CLJA.
The VA’s Office of the General Counsel recently issued a statement assuring veterans “that VA is not going to reduce or deny your benefits” if they pursue a claim under the CLJA. The statements from the VA are aimed at clarifying that VA disability benefits are still available to those who bring Camp Lejeune lawsuits under the CLJA.
So will there be an offset for those benefits? No one knows yet. A Camp Lejeune settlement will likely come with a global settlement deal that resolves all claims with the government. It makes sense just to waive any lien and pay slightly smaller settlement amounts (which also has the impact of the victim paying less in attorneys’ fees because fees come out of the gross amount of the settlement).
February 16, 2023 Update – Lawsuit Count
Nine more Camp Lejeune civil lawsuits were filed yesterday in the Eastern District of North Carolina. 112 cases have now been filed under the CLJA since the 6-month administrative claim deadline expired four days ago. Meanwhile, a spokesperson for JAG recently confirmed that the number of CLJA administrative claims received by JAG is now at 20,000. We can safely assume that at least half of these will get filed as civil lawsuits.
February 13, 2023 Update – Litigation Kickoff
The six-month deadline for the JAG administrative claims under the CLJA expired last week and, as expected, a large wave of Camp Lejeune victims have filed civil lawsuits under the CLJA. 79 CLJA cases have been filed in the Eastern District of North Carolina since Friday last week. The volume of new case filings will likely be even higher this week as more CLJA claimants become eligible to file six months after submitting their admin claims to JAG.
February 7, 2023 Update – Avalanche of Camp Lejeune Suits About to Hit North Carolina
Immediately after the CLJA was signed into law last year on August 10, 2023, a wave of Camp Lejeune victims immediately filed administrative claims under the new law with the Navy JAG. Several thousand CLJA claims were filed with JAG in the first weeks after passing the bill. The CLJA gave JAG a strict 6-month deadline to take action on these administrative claims before the claimants would be eligible to file a civil lawsuit in North Carolina federal court.
That 6-month deadline expires on Friday for the earliest CLJA admin claims. None of the initial claims have been settled (JAG never even collected supporting documents for the claims). So all of these claimants can now bring a civil case in the Eastern District of North Carolina.
February 1, 2023 Update – How Many Victims Will File a Camp Lejeune Lawsuit?
JAG has received over 15,000 claims from Camp Lejeune victims since the CLJA was passed in August. Many are now wondering how many total claims will get filed under the CLJA before the deadline in August 2024. A recent article from Bloomberg News suggests there could be as many as 500,000 CLJA claims.
There is no evidence presented to support this number, not even a quote. We think that number is grossly inflated. According to the ATSDR studies, the total number of people exposed to the contaminated water at Camp Lejeune from 1953 to 1987 is only around 1 million. The ATSDR study estimated that the number of people in this population that developed cancer and severe health conditions is no more than 200,000. We think a more reasonable estimate of the total number of CLJA claims is around 100,000 to 200,000.
January 30, 2023 Update – Astronomical Advertising
According to a recent report from Bloomberg News, lawyers and lead generation companies have already spent $145 million on Camp Lejeune advertising. Roughly $112 million of that went to television advertising. This is a massive amount. The TV advertising expenditure on Lejeune was more than double the amount spent on any other mass tort during the same period.
But the gold rush is fading. Fast. Most victims have already hired a lawyer.
Our firm has not spent a single penny on Camp Lejeune advertising.
January 24, 2023 Update – Lack of Progress
Are you frustrated by the lack of progress in the Camp Lejeune litigation? You are not the only one.
JAG and the DOJ are facing some criticism recently for what many feel is a deliberate delay in handling the thousands of compensation claims from Camp Lejeune victims under the CLJA. It has been almost six months since the first group of claims was filed after the CLJA became law. Nothing has happened, leaving many veterans very frustrated. Last week, prominent politicians started weighing in on the situation.
Congressmen Matt Cartwright (D-Pa.), one of the original sponsors of the CLJA, issued a statement last week criticizing the DOJ and JAG: “Now that the [CLJA] has been signed into law, we should not prolong the suffering of those who served our country.” Famed activist Erin Brockovich also called on the DOJ to “follow through with the spirit and the intention” of the CLJA.
We do not think the government’s delay is intentional. But it needs to put more energy into getting up to speed to process these claims.
January 11, 2023 Update – Legacy Cases Update
Four more Camp Lejeune legacy cases were recently dismissed for failing to resubmit an administrative claim to JAG before filing a civil suit. Last month, a different judge dismissed over a dozen legacy cases for the same reason. Another judge in the Eastern District of North Carolina (Hon. Louise Flanagan) has followed suit and dismissed the legacy cases assigned to her. Only a tiny handful of the legacy cases remain pending with a 3rd judge, and they will likely be rejected on the same basis very soon.
What does this mean in practical terms? Other than the Eastern District judges showing a welcomed proclivity to rule consistently, very little to anyone other than these litigants. We explain more in our December 29, 2022, update below.
January 9, 2023 Update – Number of Camp Lejeune Claims
According to a statement from a Navy JAG spokesperson, 14,000 claims have been filed by Camp Lejeune victims since the CLJA was passed in August. This rate of CLJA claims is expected to continue in the months ahead. The total number of Lejeune claims could easily reach 75,000 in 2023.
January 6, 2023 Update – PACT Act Anniversary
We are coming up five months since the PACT Act was passed. That means in just 35 days, an avalanche of lawsuits will start hitting the Eastern District of North Carolina. Indeed, the courts will give the government some grace as they manage this caseload. Their sympathy for the government’s difficulties will be enhanced by their own problems managing litigation of this size.
But we have to get this show on the road at some point. The question remains how the DOJ and the court plan to handle the massive flood of Camp Lejeune cases that will require just a ton of work for everyone.
January 1, 2023 Update – Camp Lejeune Global Settlement Estimated Payouts
In a story about Camp Lejeune claims published earlier this week, Bloomberg News reported that the Congressional Budget Office has estimated that the CLJA claims will cost “$6.1 billion over the next ten years.” This is based on the CBO cost analysis issued in February 2022 when the CLJA was first introduced.
This is an understatement. The CBO subsequently issued another report which revised its estimate for how much the CLJA claims would cost. Even if we go with this number, however, and we assume that the total number of claims with be around 20,000, that would equate to per claim average of $305,000.
But 20,000 claims vastly underestimates the number of Camp Lejeune settlements we will see. So the $6.1 billion number was antiquated from the very beginning.
December 29, 2022 – Camp Lejeune Court Ruling
A judge in the Eastern District of North Carolina has dismissed eight of the Camp Lejeune legacy cases for failing to refile administrative claims with JAG after the CLJA was passed.
Judge James C. Denver, III, ruled (Order CLJA) that when the CLJA was passed in August, it created entirely new legal claims that could not be related back to the prior lawsuits filed by the legacy plaintiffs.
Judge Denver explained that allowing the legacy plaintiffs to move forward without resubmitting their claims would “effectively abrogate portions of the [CLJA] and invite a flood of early lawsuits into a single court with four … judges.” Although this ruling only applied to eight of the 22 legacy cases, it will most likely be followed by the other judges in their cases.
Is this a big deal? As our lawyers have said, this takes away an advantage for those individual plaintiffs who are now pushed back in line with everyone else. But it might be suitable for all plaintiffs.
Why? Those cases would have had priority because they were filed first. But if you read the complaints, they are largely not the Parkinson’s disease, kidney cancer, etc., cases our attorneys think are the best to push forward. Most Camp Lejeune lawyers are bringing their best cases first. This is good for those plaintiffs and all plaintiffs because they will set the tone for Camp Lejeune settlements and verdicts.
December 28, 2022 – When Will Camp Lejeune Settlements Finally Begin?
Victims in the Camp Lejeune litigation are smart. They understand that a lawyer cannot tell them exactly when their lawsuit will settle.
But when do we think settlements might begin? Is it six months or six years? Our lawyers tackle this challenging question in a page we updated today on when we think Camp Lejeune lawsuits will begin to settle (and speculation about average settlement amounts in specific types of claims).
December 26, 2022 – Risk of Inconsistent Verdicts in North Carolina
The government filed identical motions to dismiss all Camp Lejeune legacy cases in which the plaintiffs filed suit without resubmitting a claim to JAG first. At least two judges in the Eastern District of North Carolina will be ruling on these identical motions.
Some motions have been referred to Judge Terrence W. Boyle Jr., while Judge Louise Wood Flanagan will decide others. This creates the potential for multiple inconsistent rulings on the same issue.
December 14, 2022 – Lung Cancer Lejeune Settlement Amounts
We recently updated the estimated settlement amounts for Camp Lejeune lung cancer lawsuits. Why? Further reflection on how the equipoise standard of proof unique to Camp Lejeune will impact those claims, especially for plaintiffs with a smoking history.
December 13, 2022 – Getting Consistent Camp Lejeune Rulings
In all Camp Lejeune legacy cases, the court clerk recently entered a note on the docket stating that the government’s motion to dismiss for failure to refile administrative claims has been “submitted to District Judge Terrence W. Boyle.”
This presumably means that the motion in all legacy cases will be subject to a single decision and ruling by Judge Boyle. No hearing date or additional information has been provided.
One judge ruling on all of these cases makes sense. Otherwise, you risk conflicting opinions, which is not what the Camp Lejeune litigation needs.
December 1, 2022 – New Report on the Number of Camp Lejeune Claims
The Navy JAG Tort Claims Unit reports that the number of claims filed by Camp Lejeune victims under the new CLJA is now up to 14,000. This number could easily double over the next few months.
Again, the JAG has not taken meaningful steps toward resolving or evaluating any of these claims. We are still waiting for a claim portal to get set up to enable claimants to submit support documentation.
November 28, 2022 – JAG Getting Closer to Processing Claims?
The Navy JAG Tort Claims Unit has received thousands of Camp Lejeune administrative claims since the CLJA was passed in August. JAG only has a 6-month deadline to take action on these claims, but no action has been taken in any of them.
What is holding up the process right now is the development of an online electronic claim portal to enable claimants to submit supporting documentation for their claims. A notice on the JAG website indicates that “substantiating” records (e.g., military service and medical records) for individual claims will be requested for specific claims, but not until “after the upcoming electronic portal has been launched.” The electronic portal is expected to be similar to the ECF system used in the federal courts. It will enable claimants to log in to their “claim file” and upload supporting documents when prompted.
November 24, 2022 – Camp Lejeune Pretrial Battle Over Legacy Cases Continues
Last week, lawyers for the government filed another brief in support of their motion to dismiss the Camp Lejeune legacy cases that were refiled after the passage of the CLJA without resubmitting new admin claims to JAG.
In this most recent brief, the DOJ lawyers argue that pre-CLJA admin claims don’t count because “the government’s assessment of its liability on pre-CLJA claims was based entirely because have been abrogated by the CLJA.”
While this makes some sense, the legacy plaintiffs correctly point out that the government can reassess the previously filed administrative claims based on the current post-CLJA landscape. Although there are some strategic reasons for the legacy plaintiffs to win this argument, the outcome of this battle will have minimal impact on the majority of Camp Lejeune cases.
November 18, 2022 – Getting Camp Lejeune Records from the Military
Veterans can obtain copies of their military service records from the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). Military records will be vital in every Camp Lejeune lawsuit. Not surprisingly, NARA has recently been overwhelmed with a flood of requests from Camp Lejeune veterans seeking service records to support their water contamination lawsuits.
This flood of requests has strained NARA’s resources and caused a significant backlog. When you visit the NARA’s Military Service Records webpage, a new highlight box appears at the top entitled “Important Notice Regarding the Camp Lejeune Justice Act of 2022.”
The text in the box notes that the Navy JAG does not require service records to support an initial claim but “may request records from claimants at a later date.”
This notice warns that getting military records for a CLJA claim will be a long, frustrating process. Under normal circumstances, the response time for service record requests is 3-5 months. But your lawyers can continue to push your toxic water claim forward while waiting on these records.
November 15, 2022 – Legacy Plaintiffs Battle Continues
Last week, the government filed a new brief on the administrative claim exhaustion issue in some of the Camp Lejeune legacy lawsuits. At issue is whether the legacy plaintiffs had to resubmit administrative claims to JAG before filing suit after the CLJA was passed.
The government has a right to fight to make the legacy plaintiffs get in the same line as everyone else. But why the government feels compelled to fight this fight is a mystery. It does not confer any advantage except allowing to avoid getting the litigation started for a few more months.
The latest “Responsive Memorandum” essentially just restates the same underlying argument made in the initial motion to dismiss, that the administrative claims filed by the legacy plaintiffs before the enactment of the CLJA “don’t count.”
The only thing new in this latest brief is a declaration from Randall D. Russell, head of the JAG Torts Claim Branch, attesting to the background of the Camp Lejeune legacy cases and the administration claims that were filed in these cases before the CLJA was passed.
November 14, 2022 – 8,000 Camp Lejuene Lawsuits
In an email response to a local media outlet in Baltimore last week, the JAG Tort Claims Unit stated that they have received 8,000 Camp Lejeune claims so far and that none of them have been adjudicated. Back in September, JAG responded to a similar inquiry and stated that they had received 5,000 CLJA claims. Our lawyers fully expect the number of claims filed with JAG to increase dramatically over the next few months as many claims will likely be filed in large group batches.
November 11, 2022 – Pre-Lawsuit Motions
Last Friday another Petition to Perpetuate Testimony was filed on behalf of a Camp Lejeune victim who probably won’t live long enough to see their CLJA lawsuit filed in court.
The Petitioner in the case, Mr. Nelson, is a Navy veteran who lived at Camp Lejeune on 3 separate occasions of about 45 days between 1983 and 1986. During that time, Nelson lived at the barracks on Hadnot Point, Holcomb Boulevard, and Camp Geiger. Mr. Nelson now has terminal prostate cancer and was recently admitted to hospice care. The Petition seeks to allow Nelson to give his deposition to give critical evidence in support of his CLJA case before he dies.
October 13, 2022 – Legacy Lawsuits
Since the CLJA was passed on August 10, 2022, nearly 80 plaintiffs have brought a Camp Lejeune lawsuit in federal court in North Carolina on behalf of over 100 plaintiffs. These cases are referred to as “legacy cases.” They have this moniker because they were initially filed and dismissed years ago. Now, these water contamination lawsuits are revived by the new law. Because the plaintiffs in these cases already submitted administrative claims before filing a lawsuit the first time, they were eligible to re-file immediately without submitting a new claim.
September 28, 2022 – Pretrial Discovery
As the Camp Lejeune lawsuits swing into gear, you are seeing the typical – and sometimes depressing, as in the example we are about to give – pretrial maneuvering these lawsuits require.
Yesterday, two plaintiffs filed a Petition for Depositions to Perpetuate Testimony in the Camp Lejeune litigation on behalf of two Marine Corps veterans who are dying from diseases caused by the contaminated water at Camp Lejeune. The Petition in Bishop, et al. v. United States (7:22-cv-170) seeks to have depositions of the two veterans taken immediately to preserve their testimony for anticipated wrongful death claims their family will bring if they pass. Petitioner Michael Benz developed Parkinson’s from the Camp Lejeune water. Sadly, he is currently in hospice care. Petitioner Steve Bishop has inoperable liver cancer. (We have changed the first names of these brave Marines to respect their privacy.)
August 25, 2022
The new law allowing victims to file toxic water lawsuits from Camp Lejeune imposes a 2-year deadline for Camp Lejeune victims (or their surviving relatives in wrongful death cases) to bring civil compensation claims.
Victims and their families can get a head start on their Camp Lejeune water contamination suit by obtaining copies of official documents that will prove that they lived or worked at Camp Lejeune between 1953 and 1987. Former Marines stationed at Lejeune should request their official military service records. This is called a DD214, which is something you know well if you served.
Civilians who worked on base can request copies of their Social Security Work History. Collecting these records will help your Camp Lejeune lawyer get your case moving faster. As we discuss below, our attorneys believe settlement amounts could be offered before suit is filed.
August 16, 2022
Should you bring a Camp Lejeune toxic water lawsuit if you are already getting disability payments from the government? Victims of water contamination at Camp Lejeune can bring a tort lawsuit against the government and get financial compensation even if they previously received or are receiving VA disability benefits for their injuries. Any settlement compensation awarded in a Camp Lejeune lawsuit under the CLJA may be offset or reduced by the amount of any previous VA disability awards or payments. But it will still put you in a much better position (or you would not accept the settlement amount offered).
August 15, 2022
Our lawyers see that some DD214s will incorrectly not show service at Camp Lejeune. This can happen because the Marine was stationed at a different camp. What do you do in that situation? An affidavit for the victim – or a family member – attesting to service at Lejeune should suffice.
August 12, 2022
Inspecting the final changes to the CLJA, our Camp Lejeune lawyers found another significant change. The original version of the CLJA adopted a soft evidentiary standard for demonstrating general causation. That version would have permitted reliance on a single epidemiological study.
This language would have kept attorneys out of the law-science labyrinth of what is necessary to prove causation between contaminated water at Camp Lejeune and specific types of cancer and other injuries, such as Parkinson’s disease or ALS. But at some point during the lawmaking process, this provision was removed and replaced with language that creates a normal “preponderance of the evidence” standard for proof of causation in Lejeune water cases. This means the legal-scientific burdens will be the same as any other civil lawsuit.
August 8, 2022
The PACT Act will be signed by President Biden on Wednesday in the Rose Garden.
July 27, 2022
The cloture motion to expedite the revised PACT Act is scheduled for a vote in the Senate today. The cloture motion on the first version of the PACT Act passed by a vote of 76-23 and a similar result is expected today. If the motion passes, the PACT Act will be set for a final vote tomorrow.
July 26, 2022
Yesterday we finally saw significant progress in the Senate on the final passage of the revised version of the PACT Act. After a day of debate over various amendment proposals, Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY) ended the day by filing a cloture motion to end any further debate over the bill and expedite the final approval vote. This is a very good indication that the bill will get passed before Congress leaves for vacation at the end of this week. A similar cloture motion was passed on the previous version of the PACT.
July 25, 2022
We finally have something on the calendar in the Senate. Today the Senate will convene at 3 p.m. to resume consideration of the House message to accompany #S3373. This is the legislative vehicle for the PACT Act. One thing that could potentially push this back is the continued political maneuvering to get the semiconductor bill moving forward. The Senate focused much of its effort last week on the so-called “chips bill” and as of the close of session on Thursday, it was still pending. We only have about a week left before Congress takes its summer recess on August 5, 2022.
July 22, 2022
We were hoping for a procedural vote on the PACT Act in the Senate yesterday to set up a full vote next week.
The need for a procedural vote is to stop Pennsylvania Senator Pat Toomey’s effort to stop a final vote with his proposed amendments to the House version of the PACT Act.
July 20, 2022
Our hope for a PACT Act vote in the Senate this week has been quelled by Washington’s focus on primaries in many states this week. No movement in the Senate yesterday on the latest version of the PACT Act. Many Senators have not returned to the capital after the primary elections on Tuesday.
July 19, 2022
The amended version of the PACT Act has yet to be taken up by the Senate. We may have to wait until later this week before we see any movement. Why? Lawmakers are focused on primary elections which are happening today in states around the country.
This bill is going to pass. But we have all gotten a refresher look at how the sausage gets made in Washington and it is not a pretty sight.
July 18, 2022
The amended version of the PACT Act that was passed by the House last week should be formally introduced on the Senate floor this week where it will be up for debate and approval once again.
Last time around it took the Senate nearly 3 months to eventually pass an amended version of the PACT Act. Version 1 of the PACT Act was passed by the House on March 23, 2022, and the Senate passed the amended version on June 16, 2022.
The expectation is that the Senate process will be faster this time around, hopefully with a vote this week. A new poll suggests that there is overwhelming public support for the PACT Act, with 93% of likely voters saying they support the bill.
July 15, 2022
There is talk that the PACT Act will hit the Senate floor today. But the take-home message from this reintroduction to Civics 101 for all of us is that things in Congress move slowly. But there is little opposition to this new legislation that will be a blessing for veterans far beyond just the ability to bring a Camp Lejeune water contamination lawsuit. So our expectation is the bill will pass the Senate and get signed by President Biden next week.
July 13, 2022
The U.S. House of Representatives easily passed the PACT Act last night by a vote of 342-88. This comprehensive legislation includes the Camp Lejeune Justice Act of 2022. This law will allow victims to file a Camp Lejeune water contamination lawsuit. The bill now heads back to the Senate where a vote is expected tomorrow.
July 12, 2022
Congress was back from its 2-week recess yesterday. In typical fashion, they accomplished nothing. But this is how it works – many in Congress did not make it back immediately after the break.
There has not yet been any movement to report on the resolution of the blue-slip objection from the House that is stalling the final passage of the PACT Act. Hopefully, today is the day our attorneys can report some progress. The good news for those looking to bring a Camp Lejeune water contamination lawsuit is that none of the dissenters are complaining about the Camp Lejeune Justice Act. This part of the bill has not generated any controversy. It seems everyone agrees tainted water victims deserve a fair settlement amount as compensation for the harm done to them.
As committee meetings resume their normal schedule throughout the week we should see some movement.
July 11, 2022
Congress is back in session today and we expect this bill to pass this week. The key hurdle, and it should be an easy one to climb, is resolving the blue slip objection that is currently preventing the final passage of the PACT Act. The objection could be resolved if the Senate simply strikes the tax exemption for VA healthcare providers who agree to relocate. Our attorneys will continue to report on the progress of the legislation this week.
July 8, 2022
Video of the blue slip PACT Act debate in the Senate Veteran’s Affairs Committee on June 23, 2022, features a brief statement by a frustrated Jon Tester (D-Mont.) followed by a statement by the opposition leader Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) laying out his grounds for opposing the bill. This took place the day before Congress took its 2-week recess on July 4th.
July 6, 2022
The final enactment of the PACT Act is held up by a “blue slip” privilege objection from the House over the validity of the Senate amendment adding a tax provision that only the House is authorized to issue. Blue slip objections from the House of Representatives are rarely seen. In the last 20 years, only four bills have been “blue-slipped” back to the Senate over a tax provision. The last time it happened was in June 2015.
June 30, 2022
Congress will be back in session Monday, July 11th. Getting the PACT Act back on track for the final passage should be a top priority when they return. The only aspect of the bill that is holding things up is a minor provision (unrelated to Camp Lejeune) that offers a small tax credit to VA healthcare providers who willingly relocate to underserviced locations. This was not a major part of the PACT Act and it should be easy enough to either eliminate it or revise it in a way that sidesteps the constitutional objection.
June 29, 2022
With Congress in recess, there have been no developments on the legislative front this week. The path to justice is moving slowly. Many of you are understandably frustrated with the pace of this legislation. But it should not be too much longer and it should not stop you from moving forward toward bringing your Camp Lejeune water contamination lawsuits.
Several news outlets are reporting that the Senate Veteran’s Affairs Committee was working on a resolution to the blue slip objection that is currently delaying the final passage of the PACT Act. Committee Chairman Jon Tester attempted to push through the proposed fix on the Senate floor. But it was blocked Thursday evening. Members of both the House and the Senate publicly stated on Friday this is merely a delay and that there is still strong bipartisan support for the PACT Act.
June 27, 2022
Who could be against the PACT Act that stands behind the men and women who have valiantly served our country? Senator Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) was one of the 14 Senators who voted against the bill. He remains the leader of the opposition faction. Senator Toomey blocked the last-minute resolution effort by the Senate Veteran’s Affairs Committee on Thursday. Senator Toomey fears the bill will cost too much and overburden the VA. (This is how to contact Senator Toomey.)
June 25, 2022
Now that the revised PACT Act has been blue-slipped it has become very difficult to keep track of the legislative progress since everything now is happening in unofficial back channels. The best-case scenario now is that the Senate will strike the minor tax credit provision that prompted the blue-slip objection from the House.
July 24, 2022
The final passage of the PACT Act is still temporarily on hold as lawmakers work out the blue-slip objection asserted by the House over a constitutional technicality.
At 12:30 p.m. yesterday, Congressmen Mike Doyle (D-Pa.) gave false hope with his tweet that Congress passed the PACT Act. Unfortunately, Rep. Doyle did not have his facts straight. The House has not passed the version of the bill passed by the Senate last week. Instead, certain House members are insisting that the bill is unconstitutional because of a minor provision that creates tax credits for some VA healthcare providers. Now the bill is on its way back to the Senate with a request that this provision is removed.
Our Camp Lejeune attorneys remain soundly optimistic that the bill will eventually be passed. Blue slip objections like this are generally just technical delays.
June 23, 2022
A final vote by the House on approval of the amended version of the PACT Act was supposed to happen yesterday, which would have allowed President Biden to sign it before the July 4th recess. This timeline has been now been derailed, however, by technical objections over the constitutional validity of the bill. One of the amendments added by the Senate was a provision giving VA doctors a tax benefit if they agreed to relocate to underserved, rural locations.
A group of House lawmakers claimed that this was an improper “tax provision” from the Senate because all tax and revenue laws must originate in the House. Now they are raising a “blue slip” objection which will likely send the bill back to the Senate for correction. It will still eventually be passed, but now the timeline is pushed back another month most likely.
June 22, 2022
The House Rules Committee was scheduled to vote yesterday afternoon on whether to advance the amended version of the Honoring Our Pact Act passed by the Senate (H.R. 3967). Unfortunately, that did not happen and consideration of the PACT Act was formally postponed until recalled by the Chair of the Committee. The Senate version of the bill is in danger of being rejected by the House. This is a prime example of why most of us hate politics. A straight line is never the path. This bill will get passed. The Committee just ran out of time yesterday and pushed the PACT Act vote back.
June 21, 2022
The House is scheduled to vote on whether to approve and pass the amended version of the Honoring Our Pact Act. The approval vote appears to be a mere formality. When passed, the bill could be signed into law by President Biden by the end of the week, opening the door for thousands of victims to seek justice via a Camp Lejeune lawsuit to get a jury verdict or a fair settlement amount from the government.
June 20, 2022
The slightly revised version of the Honoring Our Pact Act that was passed by the Senate last week now needs to be approved by the House. This is pretty much a lock to happen considering the House previously passed almost the same bill back in March 2022, by a wide margin. None of the changes adopted by the Senate are highly controversial. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Ca.) has said the House will move quickly to get this bill passed, presumably this week. So, hopefully soon, our lawyers will be providing Zantac water contamination lawsuit updates instead of legislative updates.
June 14, 2022 Update
The Senate is now set to take a final vote this week on the passage of the Honoring Our Pact Act (HOPA) and all indications are that the bill will be passed by a wide margin.
June 13, 2022 Update
Last week, the Senate voted 86-17 in favor of a cloture motion to proceed on the bill. This means that the Senate agreed to limit debate over the bill and effectively fast-track its consideration for the final approval vote.
This does not necessarily mean that the bill will pass a final vote, but it is a very positive indication.
Senator Patty Murry (D-WA) spoke on the Senate floor on Wednesday about the importance of passing the HOPA. Senator Murry’s comments about the importance of passing the HOPA bill generally mirrored those previously cited by her Republican colleague, Marco Rubio (R-FL), last month when announcing his support for the bill.
June 8, 2022 Update
There has been no progress on the Camp Lejeune Justice Act since the shootings in Uvalde, Texas. The hope was that the bill would be passed by the Senate last week after Memorial Day. But these shootings have put many legislative initiatives on the back burner for the moment, including this one.
Most Camp Lejeune lawyers are confident this bill will soon be passed by the Senate. But you may want to remind your senators of the importance of this bill to military families who have served this country.
Camp Lejeune Water Contamination Lawsuit
Let’s look at a few of these Camp Lejeune toxic water lawsuits because they are a harbinger of what is to come if this new law passes.
Jones v. United States
In Jul7 2007, Laura J. Jones filed the first Camp Lejeune water contamination lawsuit. After first filing an administrative complaint with the Department of the Navy (as required to bring a Federal Tort Claim Act case), Jones filed a Camp Lejeune lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina.
Jones was the wife of a Marine Corps Corporal and she and her husband lived in base housing at Camp Lejeune from 1980 to 1983. The house that Jones and her husband lived in received its drinking water supply from one of the contaminated water treatment plants at Camp Lejeune.
In her Camp Lejeune lawsuit, Jones alleged that she was exposed to carcinogenic chemicals in the water supply at the Marine base, including TCE, PCE, DCE, vinyl chloride, and benzene. These are the same operative facts you will see in the soon-to-be-filed water contamination lawsuits at Camp Lejeune. Jones claimed her exposure to these toxic chemicals led her to develop non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL).
The government immediately filed a motion to dismiss the Jones case, arguing that her claims were time-barred under the Federal Tort Claims Act’s statute of limitations. Specifically, the government asserted that Jones should have been on inquiry notice as early as 2005 because by that time there were numerous media reports about the Camp Lejeune water contamination issues.
The District Court denied the motion to dismiss based on the FTCA statute of limitations. The court ruled Jones could not have been on notice of her potential claim in 2005 because the USMC did not do enough to inform people.
Shriberg v. United States
In January 2011, Joel Shriberg filed a Camp Lejeune toxic water lawsuit against the U.S. Government in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina. Shriberg was a former Marine with 155th Howitzer Battalion, and he served as a clerk at Camp Lejeune and lived on base from 1957 to 1959.
In 2004, Shriberg was diagnosed with a rare form of male breast cancer that spread to his lungs. Shriberg had no family history of breast cancer or any other risk factors. Several experts concluded that his cancer was likely caused by the water contamination at Camp Lejeune.
In his toxic water lawsuit, Shriberg alleged that the government had a duty to provide Camp Lejeune with a safe drinking water supply. Shriberg claims that the USMC breached this duty by failing to provide a safe water supply, failing to properly test the water, ignoring early reports of contamination, and then covering up the existence of the contamination.