Washington (KINY) – U.S. Senators Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) and Steve Daines (R-Mont.), and American Legion Commander Daniel J. Seehafer, Wednesday hosted a press conference celebrating newly imposed caps on the fees trial lawyers can charge in cases representing Marines, their families, and other individuals impacted by water contamination at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune in North Carolina.
The caps, announced in September, came after Sen. Sullivan, with the strong support of the American Legion, attempted to resolve the issue for more than a year in the Senate.
In September, Sen. Sullivan pressed the issue with U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland two weeks prior to the announcement of caps by the Department of Justice (DOJ).
“I’ve seen a lot of issues that call out for justice, but I’ve never seen one that calls out for justice as much as this one does,” said Sen. Sullivan. “For the past year, law firms across the country have unleashed a billion-dollar-plus ad campaign, with many aiming to steal the bulk of the compensation due to Marines by charging contingency fees as high as 60 to 70 percent. After a year of fighting this injustice, I spoke with the attorney general and we were able to get the Department of Justice to finally impose caps and protect our veterans. Now we want to get the word out: If you’re a veteran who served at Camp Lejeune and a law firm is trying to take 60 to 70 percent of your money—wrong answer. The maximum lawyers can charge now is 20 to 25 percent. That’s it. I want to thank the American Legion for being by our side from day one. They made this their top priority. This is a major victory for our veterans as we approach Veterans Day.”
He emphasized that he wants any veteran impacted by the water contamination to know these caps are now in place.
Click here to watch the full press conference.