The average payout for the Camp Lejeune lawsuit is currently unclear, but plaintiffs in these cases may recover settlement amounts of anywhere from tens of thousands of dollars to over a million dollars. The specific amount your claim is worth in Illinois will depend on various influencing factors that pertain to your case, including the severity of your injuries or illness resulting from water contamination at Camp Lejeune.
Camp Lejeune Contamination
Before 1987, Camp Lejeune water experienced a degree of contamination that resulted from leaking and spilling of liquids from local businesses, storage tanks, and waste disposal facilities, among other sources.
This contamination caused volatile organic compounds (VOCs) to get into tap water used to service the military base, homes, and other facilities in the area. These VOCs comprised many types of specific contaminants, including a wide range of harmful chemicals, dry cleaning solvents, and degreasers, all of which can cause illnesses in people after long-term exposure.
Health Risks Associated With Contaminated Water
Because of the large number of VOCs resulting in water contamination, people exposed to Camp Lejeune water have developed many types of conditions.
Some of the many health conditions include birth defects, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), multiple myeloma, Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, and cancers affecting different parts of the body.
Individuals Impacted by Camp Lejeune Contamination in Illinois
Typically, you’re eligible for a class action lawsuit payout if you lived or worked at Camp Lejeune anywhere from 1953 to 1987 and developed one of the many illnesses involved in these lawsuits.
Some individuals filing Camp Lejeune lawsuits include:
- Reservists
- Veterans with the U.S. Marine Corps or U.S. Navy
- Civilian workers
- Guardsmen
- Family members of people who worked at Camp Lejeune, including spouses and children
Factors Influencing Average Camp Lejeune Payout
The settlement amounts for Camp Lejeune lawsuits depend on certain factors, but they can range from around $10,000 to over $1,000,000. The following are some of the specific factors that will impact the amount of compensation you may recover:
Severity of Health Issues
The severity of your condition will play a big role in calculating the total settlement amount. The more serious your condition, the higher the amount of compensation you’re able to recover.
The main reason for this is that serious illnesses will require significantly more treatment in the long term, and patients may not make a full recovery, leading to lifelong medical expenses and the inability to return to work or work in the same capacity as they could before their illness.
As a result, settlements will need to be able to cover these costs.
Duration of Exposure to Contaminated Water
The length of time you or a loved one sustained exposure to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune will also influence the total compensation amount.
The longer you were exposed to the VOCs in the water, the more likely it is that a condition resulted from the exposure to these harmful chemicals. Conversely, if you only spent a small amount of time at Camp Lejeune, it may be more difficult to prove that VOCs in this area contributed to a condition.
Possible Damages
When calculating settlement amounts in these and other class action lawsuits, there are multiple damages that will factor into the total compensation. An experienced class action lawyer will be able to assess each case and determine how much the case is worth by identifying and quantifying all damages.
These damages could include:
Inclusion of Medical Expenses
The cost of treating and recovering from a condition will largely influence the settlement amount you may recover.
For instance, you may need to pay medical bills for ongoing care, medication, rehabilitation, and other forms of care. Compensation in a successful lawsuit would help cover all of these expenses.
Emotional and Mental Distress Compensation
In addition to monetary damages like medical expenses, plaintiffs in the Camp Lejeune lawsuits may recover compensation for emotional and mental distress.
Serious illnesses, such as cancer, can lead to significant pain and suffering among victims and their loved ones, which can have a serious negative impact on their lives and well-being. Non-economic damages can quantify this pain and suffering and add these components to the total settlement amount.
Attorneys and courts have specific methods for calculating non-economic damages.
Punitive Damages
Many personal injury cases can involve punitive damages, which punish defendants who were aware of or should have been aware of the circumstances leading to injuries or illnesses and who failed to properly address the issue.
In Camp Lejeune cases, under the Camp Lejeune Act, plaintiffs will not be able to recover punitive damages from the defendants in these cases, which mainly include the U.S. government.
If you’re not sure what types of damages you may recover in a case, a lawyer can meet with you to discuss your condition and help identify and calculate all damages that you are able to seek.
Starting a Camp Lejeune Lawsuit
If you or a loved one experienced exposure to contaminated water in Camp Lejeune anywhere from 1953 to 1987, you may be able to seek compensation for related illnesses that have since developed. To figure out how to join a class action lawsuit and to determine how much you may be able to recover, speak with a class action attorney in Illinois with experience handling these types of cases.
The average payout for the Camp Lejeune lawsuit isn’t specific, but you may be able to consult with an attorney to determine what kind of compensation you may be able to recover. Some cases involving less serious conditions and minimal exposure could result in settlements of around $10,000, while cases involving years of exposure and serious illnesses resulting from this exposure could warrant compensation of $1,000,000 or more.
