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… Read More

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… Read More

When a railroad employee settles an injury claim brought pursuant to the Federal Employers’ Liability Act (FELA) with a railroad, the railroad will always require the employee to sign a Release before the settlement is paid. A Release is a writ… Read More

Consider a case in which a railroad employee, as a part of his job, is required to enter the property of a customer of the railroad. While performing his job duties, the employee is injured because a walkway on the customer’s property is not ma… Read More

A tragic accident occurred yesterday at the ArcelorMittal steel plant in Cleveland, Ohio when a 50 year old railroad employee was killed after falling from a train car. The incident raises the question of what damages are available to the individual�… Read More

How would you like your supervisor to follow you all day, look over your shoulder at everything you do, and write down every time you make a mistake? This is what railroad employees endure during rules tests on a regular basis. For the vast majority… Read More

“In the taxonomy of the law, the Federal Employers’ Liability Act…is a platypus. Intended to provide a remedy for injured railroad workers, the FELA ‘hovers ambivalently between workers’ compensation law and the common law of negligence. It… Read More

The United States Supreme Court decided last month in a 5-4 decision that injured railroad workers can recover damages under the Federal Employers’ Liability Act (“FELA”) if the railroad’s negligence “played any part, even the slightest, in… Read More