N.C. Court Says Camp Lejeune Plaintiffs Not Entitled to Trial by Jury, Grants Motion to Strike Jury Trial Demand

RALEIGH, N.C. –– The court overseeing the coordinated docket for Camp Lejeune water contamination claims has granted the United States’ motion to strike the jury trial demand in the plaintiffs’ master complaint, finding that in enacting the Camp Lejeune Justice Action, Congress did not “unequivocally depart from its usual practice of not permitting a jury trial against the United States.”

In a Feb. 6 order, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina concluded that the CLJA “does not unequivocally, affirmatively, and unambiguously provide plaintiffs the right to a jury trial in actions seeking relief under subsection …