Registering with the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund Does Not Waive Your Future Legal Rights

If you were a first responder or you worked, lived, or went to school in Lower Manhattan below Canal Street on or after 9/11, you have the right to register with the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund (VCF).

Exposure to Ground Zero toxins increases your risk of developing many respiratory illnesses and 69 different types of cancer.

You are eligible to register even if you are currently healthy, and registering with the 9/11 VCF does not waive any of your legal rights.

To register for free, visit 911victims.com or call 212-385-8000. Registering protects your right to file a claim in the future.

Filing a claim involves a different process.

When you file a claim with the 9/11 VCF, you waive the right to file civil lawsuits in state or federal court related to the events of September 11, 2001.

The waiver was created to establish the 9/11 VCF as the primary method of securing compensation for victims, sparing them and their families the time and legal expense involved in filing multiple lawsuits. 

With the 9/11 VCF – unlike a lawsuit – you have the right to amend your claim if you develop another illness.

For instance, if you are awarded $20,000 for a non-life threatening respiratory illness or $90,000 for a non-life-threatening skin cancer, you have the right to amend your claim if – God forbid – you are diagnosed with a serious cancer in the future. 

In addition, if a 9/11 victim passes away from an illness resulting from Ground Zero exposure, their family has the right to file a wrongful death claim on behalf of the victim’s estate, regardless of how much the victim was previously awarded for pain and suffering.

Barasch & McGarry, Lawyers for the 9/11 Community, represents more than 35,000 members of the 9/11 community.

If you were there, you are eligible to register with the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund.

Protect your rights! Visit 911victims.com or call 212-385-8000 today.