More than two years after the Camp Lejeune Justice Act started allowing people who were sickened by toxic drinking water aboard the base to sue for compensation, the process for compensating the victims continues to slowly move forward.
The law firm Miller and Zois is one of many representing people who say their illnesses were caused by drinking contaminated water from the early 50s through the late 80s, and says the Camp Lejeune Claims Unit is using strategies to speed up settlements by addressing three key challenges.
They include simplifying documentation requirements that prove they lived or worked on base for at least 30 days during those years; automatically advancing pending claims for review, bypassing law firm validation of those claims; and weeding out duplicate claims filed by multiple law firms for the same victim.
The lawyers say the intention is to accelerate the settlement timeline by reducing administrative delays and prioritizing cases based on existing documentation.