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At the Status Conference held on June 27, 2024, United State Magistrate Judge Robert B. Jones, Jr. announced that two threshold issues must be resolved before the Track 1 bellwether trials begin. Establishing these two baseline requirements should help streamline future proceedings and expedite relief for those waiting.
An Order was issued by the Court following the status conference hearing, giving the Plaintiffs’ Leadership Group and the Defense additional information on requirements and deadlines for these pretrial resolutions. The Order also reiterated that the Plaintiffs must present sufficient proof to conclude that exposure to the water at Camp Lejeune can cause a particular type of harm that the Track 1 plaintiffs are experiencing.
The following two threshold issues must be addressed per the order:
- Toxic chemical exposure from the water at Camp Lejeune
- General causation for the Track 1 Illnesses
To resolve these issues, the Court is ordering an expedited period of expert discovery limited to the Track 1 diseases followed by Daubert and dispositive motion briefing. A hearing on the issue of exposure will be held before the entire court, and the general causation hearings will be held before individual Judges presiding over the Camp Lejeune trials.
The parties were also ordered to meet and confer and submit a joint proposed pretrial schedule by July 12, 2024, which will include timelines for the expert discovery, Daubert proceedings, and dispositive motion briefing.
The Order is an excellent next step for Camp Lejeune service members and their families anxiously awaiting a resolution. This Order helps establish a process for the bellwether proceedings moving forward and brings everyone closer to the relief they deserve. Read the hearing transcript in its entirety to learn more.