[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3237 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 3237

 To amend the Camp Lejeune Justice Act of 2022 to ensure claimants are 
    adequately informed regarding filing a Federal cause of action.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            November 7, 2023

  Mr. Tillis introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
               referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the Camp Lejeune Justice Act of 2022 to ensure claimants are 
    adequately informed regarding filing a Federal cause of action.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Patriot Bill of Rights''.

SEC. 2. INFORMATION REGARDING FEDERAL CAUSE OF ACTIONS RELATING TO 
              WATER AT CAMP LEJEUNE, NORTH CAROLINA.

    (a) In General.--The Camp Lejeune Justice Act of 2022 (28 U.S.C. 
2671 note prec.) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(k) Acknowledgments.--
            ``(1) Guidance and advice services.--An individual, or the 
        legal representative of an individual, bringing a cause of 
        action under subsection (b) shall sign a written 
        acknowledgment, provided by the attorney, indicating that the 
        individual or legal representative bringing the action 
        understands that the individual or legal representative may 
        seek guidance and advice free of charge from--
                    ``(A) organizations recognized under section 5902 
                of title 38, United States Code;
                    ``(B) the Secretary of Veterans Affairs;
                    ``(C) the congressional representatives of the 
                individual or legal representative; and
                    ``(D) the Tort Claims Unit of the Department of the 
                Navy.
            ``(2) Other required acknowledgments.--An attorney 
        representing an individual or the legal representative of an 
        individual in a cause of action brought under subsection (b) 
        shall file with the Secretary of the Navy a written 
        acknowledgment signed by the individual or legal representative 
        indicating that the individual or legal representative 
        understands--
                    ``(A) legal representation by an attorney is not 
                required to file an action; and
                    ``(B) the attorney's fee arrangement regarding 
                representation in the action, which shall include an 
                acknowledgment of whether the fee arrangement is one 
                under which the total amount of the fee payable to the 
                attorney is--
                            ``(i) to be paid to the attorney by the 
                        claimant, subsequent to the allocation of the 
                        award; or
                            ``(ii) contingent on whether the matter is 
                        resolved in a manner favorable to the claimant.
            ``(3) Application to pending matters.--For any cause of 
        action brought under subsection (b) that is pending on the date 
        of enactment of this subsection, not later than 90 days after 
        such date of enactment, the individual bringing the action, the 
        legal representative of the individual, or the attorney for the 
        individual or legal representative, as applicable, shall file 
        the acknowledgments described in paragraphs (1) and (2).
            ``(4) Advertising.--A law firm that receives veteran data 
        from an advertising agency shall reduce the attorney's legal 
        fee in an amount equal to the cost incurred by the law firm to 
        receive the data.''.
    (b) Severability.--If any provision of the amendment made by 
subsection (a), or the application of such a provision to any person or 
circumstance, is held to be unconstitutional, the remaining provisions 
of the amendment made by subsection (a), the other provisions of the 
Camp Lejeune Justice Act of 2022 (28 U.S.C. 2671 note prec.), and the 
application of the provision of the amendment made by subsection (a) 
held to be unconstitutional to any other person or circumstance shall 
not be affected thereby.
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