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Lost Wages Payable in FELA Claim Are Taxable Under RRTA
March 17th, 2019
On March 4, 2019, the United States Supreme Court decided BNSF Railway Co. v. Loos and held that damages paid for an on-the-job injury are taxable under the Railroad Retirement Tax Act (RRTA). Previously, FELA awards were considered payment for an in…
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Categories: Rail Law Blog
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FRSA Update - "Contributing Factor" Element
February 18th, 2019
To prove a claim of retaliation under the Federal Rail Safety Act (“FRSA”), a railroad worker must prove the following elements: (1) he engaged in a protected activity; (2) the railroad knew about the protected activity; (3) the worker wa…
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Categories: Rail Law Blog
Lax Fines for Violations Won't Help Nursing Home Residents
January 23rd, 2018
A recent New York Times article reported on the Trump Administration’s actions to “ease” nursing home fines for violations of Medicare regulations. Ease is a word that is often used when talking about the lessening of a heavy, and o…
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Categories: Common Law Blog
How to Complaint About an Ohio Nursing Home
January 23rd, 2018
You may have been in, or heard stories about, a nursing home where things just didn’t seem right. Maybe it was the line of residents parked in their wheelchairs in the hallway. Maybe it was a smell indicating residents weren’t being given…
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Categories: Common Law Blog
Witnesses and the FELA Claim
January 18th, 2018
When a railroad employee is injured at work, there are frequently other employees around who can testify as to the cause of the accident. It is important that the injured employee, or his union representative, gather the names of such witnesses. It s…
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Categories: Rail Law Blog
Ohio Nursing Home Residents' Rights
January 4th, 2018
Placing a loved one in a Skilled Nursing or Long Term Care Facility can be difficult in many ways. From feelings of losing independence, to concerns about whether the facility will be willing and able to provide the care required, the experience can…
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Categories: Common Law Blog
FRSA Medical Treatment Provision Cases Part II
January 2nd, 2018
In my previous post, I discussed Section (c) of the FRSA, which prohibits railroads from interfering with the medical treatment plan of an employee. Since that blog was posted, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals overruled the decision of the Administ…
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Categories: Rail Law Blog
Update: FRSA Medical Treatment Provision Cases
March 17th, 2017
In a previous post, I discussed the medical treatment provisions of the Federal Rail Safety Act (FRSA) that prohibit railroads from denying, delaying, or interfering with the medical treatment of an employee “who is injured during the course of…
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Categories: Rail Law Blog
Can the Railroad Discriminate Based on Obesity?
March 16th, 2017
This post considers the question of whether an employer can take an adverse action against an employee because that person is obese, or overweight. The issue was recently presented to me when a railroad signal employee was removed from his assignment…
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Categories: Rail Law Blog
Investigative Reporter Details Dangers of Shipping Crude Oil by Rail
July 14th, 2015
A recent derailment of a CSX train in Maryville, TN carrying hazardous chemicals was the latest example of the catastrophic dangers involved with shipping combustible materials through populated areas on aging railroad infrastructures. Most of the re…
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Categories: Rail Law Blog