Injury guide
Updated Oct 6, 202626 sources
Parkinson’s disease is a brain disorder that affects how you move and gets worse with time. Here is how it is found, which records show it, and what paraquat and Camp Lejeune claims say.
These are cited sources. Their inclusion does not imply that they endorse People’s Justice or reviewed this page.
Chief Judge Nancy J. Rosenstengel · U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois · Judge over the federal paraquat cases (MDL No. 3004)
Finding: In the four trial selection cases, the court granted the motion to exclude Dr. Martin Wells, plaintiffs’ sole general causation expert, whose opinion was that occupational paraquat exposure can cause Parkinson’s disease.
S.D. Ill.: Paraquat MDL order on Dr. Wells (Apr. 17, 2024) (opens in a new tab) · Apr 17, 2024 · Checked Oct 5, 2026
National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences · National Institutes of Health · Publisher of the Parkinson’s disease research page
Finding: Pesticide exposure has consistently been associated with the onset of Parkinson’s disease; an NIEHS-funded study found paraquat among pesticides that contribute to its onset and progression.
NIEHS: Parkinson’s disease (opens in a new tab) · Mar 19, 2026 · Checked Oct 5, 2026
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency · Federal government · Publisher of the paraquat dichloride page
Finding: EPA has not found a clear link between paraquat exposure from labeled uses and Parkinson’s disease; studies range in quality and give conflicting results.
EPA: Paraquat dichloride (opens in a new tab) · Nov 13, 2025 · Checked Oct 5, 2026
Agricultural Health Study (NIEHS and NCI) · Environmental Research · 2020
Read the source: Pesticide use and incident Parkinson’s disease in a cohort of farmers and their spouses (opens in a new tab) · Checked Oct 5, 2026
Not covered by this case
Parkinson’s disease is a disorder of the nervous system that affects movement and gets worse over time. Nerve cells in part of the brain weaken and die. These cells make dopamine, a chemical that helps the body move smoothly.
NINDS says the cause is unknown in most people. Some cases run in families. Researchers think both genes and things in the environment play a part.
MedlinePlus says it usually begins around age 60 and is more common in men than in women.
Common signs are shaking, stiff muscles, slow movement and trouble with balance. Signs often start on one side of the body. Talk with your doctor if you notice these signs. Other illnesses can look like Parkinson’s, so NIA says it is important to get the right diagnosis early.
Some people notice other changes first, such as sleep problems, constipation, loss of smell or restless legs, NIA says. Some of these can also come with normal aging. Talk with your doctor if they get worse or get in the way of daily life.
Over time, some people have trouble walking, talking or doing everyday tasks. Mood, sleep and thinking can change too.
No single test can prove Parkinson’s disease. Doctors look at your health history and do an exam of your nerves and movement. If your symptoms get better with Parkinson’s medicine, that is another sign.
A DaT scan, a type of brain imaging, can help with the diagnosis, NINDS says, but it cannot tell Parkinson’s from similar disorders. MRI and other scans can rule out other causes.
Newer tests look for a protein called alpha-synuclein in a small skin sample or in spinal fluid. They can help, but they also cannot tell Parkinson’s apart from some similar disorders.
Because no single test proves it, the key records are the doctor’s notes. Look for a neurological exam that names the diagnosis and its date. Add any DaT scan or MRI reports and your list of medicines.
Notes on how you responded to Parkinson’s medicine can also matter, since NIA says improvement on medicine is another sign of the disease.
VA asks Camp Lejeune veterans for medical records that show the condition. You can ask each doctor and clinic for copies, and providers normally have up to 30 days to send them.
Research on paraquat is mixed. NIEHS says a study it paid for found that paraquat and some other pesticides help Parkinson’s start and get worse. EPA’s page, last updated in 2025, says it has not found a clear link when paraquat is used as the label says. For TCE, a chemical in the Camp Lejeune water, a CDC agency found some sign of a link but not proof.
NIEHS says a study it paid for found that paraquat is one of several pesticides that “contribute to” Parkinson’s disease starting and getting worse. NIEHS also reports that people who used paraquat or rotenone at work got Parkinson’s 2.5 times as often as people who did not. That study compared 110 people with Parkinson’s and 358 without it. A later study of 38,274 pesticide applicators and 27,836 spouses found limited evidence of a link with paraquat on its own.
EPA says studies on paraquat and Parkinson’s range in quality and give conflicting results. EPA’s paraquat page (last updated November 13, 2025) says it “has not found a clear link” between Parkinson’s and paraquat used as the label directs. In November 2025, EPA said it is less sure than before how much paraquat can rise into the air as a vapor. In June 2026, EPA posted a formal request asking the makers for that data.
ATSDR rated the evidence for TCE, a chemical found in Camp Lejeune’s drinking water, and Parkinson’s as “equipoise and above.” That means enough research to support a link, but not enough to say for sure that it causes the disease.
On April 17, 2024, in the first four test cases, the federal paraquat judge ruled that the only expert for the people suing on whether paraquat can cause Parkinson’s could not testify. The judge found his opinions did not meet the federal rules for expert evidence. The same day, the judge dismissed those four cases. The four people appealed. In April 2025, the appeals court paused the appeals while the two sides worked on an agreement to resolve them. The latest appeals court order we found, from August 2025, kept that pause in place. In the federal paraquat and Camp Lejeune court records we checked, we found no ruling that paraquat or the Camp Lejeune water causes Parkinson’s disease.
People who say the weed killer paraquat caused their Parkinson’s disease have filed claims. So have people who say the water at Camp Lejeune caused it. This page cannot tell you whether you could bring a claim.
The federal paraquat cases were grouped in an Illinois court in 2021. In April 2024, the court said more than 5,000 people claimed paraquat caused their Parkinson’s disease.
In 2023, the Camp Lejeune court put Parkinson’s disease among five illnesses in its first group of cases. The court said this choice does not reflect any view of whether the claims are valid. A 2023 Justice Department and Navy guide for a faster way to resolve claims put Parkinson’s in its second tier. DOJ now says it is not taking more papers for that process.
Each case page below shows the latest news.
Two VA lists name Parkinson’s disease. One is for veterans who served at Camp Lejeune, and the other is for Agent Orange. These are benefit programs with their own rules, separate from any lawsuit.
For Camp Lejeune, the veteran must have served at least 30 days there or at MCAS New River between August 1, 1953, and December 31, 1987. Unlike some cancers, Parkinson’s is not on the list of conditions VA helps pay to treat for family members who lived there. The Agent Orange list has its own service rules. Being on a list does not by itself mean someone qualifies. A lawyer or claims agent who helps with a VA claim must be accredited by VA. Help from an accredited veterans group is always free. Accredited lawyers and agents can generally charge only for help given after VA’s first decision on the claim. They also need a fee agreement signed by you and them. VA’s website has a search tool to find an accredited representative.
The person with Parkinson’s can ask their doctor to send copies of their records to a family member or caregiver. To act in the person’s place, a family member needs legal authority to make health care decisions for them, such as a health care power of attorney. State law decides who has it.
Family members are often the first to notice changes, NIA says.
If the person has died, the executor or administrator of the estate, or another person state law allows to act for them, can get the records. A doctor or hospital may choose to share some facts with a relative who helped with the person’s care or bills. The facts must relate to that help, and the doctor will not share them if the person said before death that they did not want it.
If someone died, the wrongful death case page explains in general how those claims work.
Checked against 26 primary sources by People's Justice editors · Updated
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