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Railroad Injury/FELA:

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Railroad/FELA Injury Lawyers Use Safety Regulations Against Railroads, Including radio/dispatching regulations-This helps prove responsibility on railoads

In railroad injury cases representing workers, our FELA/railroad injury lawyers expend much effort investigating, along with our investigators, whether a railroad complied with pertinent federal or state safety statutes and regulations, that may apply to any circumstances of the client injury. Why? Violations mean the railroad cannot offer the worker’s contributory fault (think rule violations) nor must any “careless” or “negligent” conduct by the railroad be proven. Many times, these regulation violations are not obvious. If a failure in a train air brake system malfunctions, stopping a train, and if a conductor get hurt while inspecting the train brakes, when he trips over debris, is this a regulatory violation? Sure is, per many legal cases. The conductor was injured directly because of a safety appliance act malfunction of a train air brake system, but if a malfunction in the engine of the train (systems, controls, gauges, radio) causes the train to stop, and causes the conductor to investigate, this also can be a locomotive inspection act violation as well.

Also, if an injury arises from a violation of radio dispatch regulations, this regulation violation imposes strict liability on a railroad-meaning the proof of the violation is all the worker must prove-if the injury arises partly from the violation-no careless employer conduct must be proved, and then a jury must simply decide the full and fair compensation owed the worker. Also, worker contributory fault is not relevant so the railroad’s efforts to partly blame the worker become inadmissible against the regulation violation. Technically the radio dispatch regulations fall under the safety appliance act statutes/regulations.

Read just how these issues are explained in an actual legal brief filed in a case involving a head on collision of two trains, and our argument that railroad dispatcher radio regulatory violations caused the worker injuries and therefore worker “company rule” or railroad rule violations were irrelevant as the main cause was the regulation violated by the other railroad employee.

Click here to read the brief outlining railroad radio dispatch regulation violations by a railroad.

About the Editors: Shapiro, Cooper Lewis & Appleton personal injury law firm is based in Virginia (VA), near the NE North Carolina (NC) border and handles car,truck,railroad, and medical negligence cases and more. Our lawyers proudly edit the Virginia Beach Injuryboard, Norfolk Injuryboard, and Northeast North Carolina Injuryboard as a pro bono public information service. Lawyers licensed in: VA, NC, SC, WV, DC, KY.

Shapiro, Cooper Lewis & Appleton personal injury law firm is based in Virginia (VA), near the Northeast North Carolina (NC) border, practicing primarily in the southeastern U.S. and handles only injury law, including car, truck, railroad, and medical negligence cases and more. The firm's Virginia website is: hsinjurylaw.com, and North Carolina site is: http://Carolina.HSInurylaw.com/ and our injury firm edits the injury law blogs Virginia Beach Injuryboard, Norfolk Injuryboard, as well as the Northeast North Carolina Injuryboard and also hosts a video library covering many FAQ’s on personal injury subjects. Lawyers licensed in: VA, NC, SC, WV, DC, KY.

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Main VA Office
1294 Diamond Springs Road
Virginia Beach, VA 23455
Phone: (757)-460-7776
Fax: (757)-460-3428
Toll Free: 1-800-752-0042

Hampton-Peninsula Area Office
Mill Point Center
101 Eaton Street
Hampton, Virginia 23669
Phone: (757)-788-8162

North Carolina Office
101 E. Elizabeth Street
Elizabeth City, NC 27909
Toll Free: 1-800-752-0042

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