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Railroad Physical Injury Lawyer

At Doran & Murphy, PLLC we offer a wealth of legal and trial experience to railroad workers who have been hurt during the course of their employment. Because of our stellar reputation for resolving these often complicated cases, other law firms often refer their clients to us. For 20 years, we have devoted our passion and energies to fighting for the rights of those who have suffered traumatic injuries in all kinds of railroad workplace accidents and scenarios. If you or someone you know has been injured in this way, anywhere in the nation, we recommend that you contact a railroad physical injury lawyer from our firm to arrange for a free consultation at your earliest opportunity.

Sustained a Physical Injury as a Railroad Worker? | A Lawyer Can Help.

In our long history of representing railroad workers, we have won verdicts and settlements for individuals who have been hurt in such situations as:

  • A conductor who fell from a snow bank during an air brake inspection, herniating a lumbar disc
  • A machinist who suffered a knee injury when he tripped on a locomotive
  • A conductor who injured his lower back while setting the handbrake on a railroad car
  • A engineer who suffered a head injury during a derailment
  • An engineer who sustained soft tissue cervical damage when a gondola car struck his locomotive
  • A conductor who suffered a knee injury when he slipped on iron ore pellets in the railroad yard
  • A conductor who was injured after falling on spilled oil on the locomotive steps
  • A conductor who suffered a knee injury when ballast shifted under his foot
  • A conductor injured while operating a railroad switch

The Law is on Your Side

Several statutes can be used in advocating your case by our law firm. Some of the applicable laws which protect railroad workers include:

Federal Employers Liability Act

Congress enacted the Federal Employers Liability Act (FELA) to help railroad workers seek compensation for railroad injuries sustained by the negligence of their employers. The FELA requires that railroads provide employees with a reasonably safe place to work. They must also provide safe equipment, proper tools, adequate training and assistance. If a railroad fails to take these safety measures, or if an employee is injured through the carelessness of another employee, the railroad is held responsible and an injured worker is entitled to recover not only time or wages lost but is entitled to be paid for all of his medical expenses, pain and suffering, and for any permanent injuries. If a railroad worker is killed, his survivors are entitled to recover all damages which have been suffered.

The FELA is not an absolute liability law. The fact that you are injured while employed by the railroad does not guarantee recovery either through settlement or through the courts. However, if you can prove a FELA claim, you are then entitled to compensation.

A railroader is entitled to recover damages from his company under the FELA if the following exists:

  • The railroad is engaged in any activity in interstate commerce (i.e. it either crosses state lines or handles interstate freight).
  • The worker is injured as a result of the negligence or carelessness, even in the slightest, of the railroad or any employee of the railroad, or the injury is caused by any defect in the engines, cars, machinery, track, or any other equipment of the railroad.

Generally, recovery is available under the FELA for an on-the-job injury of a railroad employee during the course of his duties, including dead-heading or traveling on behalf of the railroad, so long as the railroad failed to provide a safe place to work.

What Is The Federal Safety Appliance Act?

This law requires railroads to equip their railcars and locomotives with properly working safety appliances, including handbrakes, automatic couplers, secure grab irons, safe sill steps, and efficient power brakes.

Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) Regulations

The FRA was created in order to issue safety regulations to promote railroad safety. Our railroad physical injury lawyer is familiar with the FRA and what regulations they have enacted to ensure the safety of all railroad workers.

What is The Locomotive Inspection Act?

This law was created in order to ensure that all locomotives being used are safe without unnecessary danger of personal injury. When an unsafe locomotive is not immediately removed from usage on the railroad, the results can be catastrophic. We are familiar with this law and the hazards that can occur when it is not adhered to.

Get In Touch With a Railroad Physical Injury Attorney Today

Our firm has earned an outstanding reputation for railroad injuries of all types, as well as occupational diseases including cancer and pulmonary diseases from exposure to toxic substances, dusts and fumes (asbestos, sand, coal, diesel exhausts, solvents and welding fumes).

A link has been made between diesel fumes, asbestos, sand dust (silica), solvents and welding fumes exposure and many diseases of the lungs and respiratory system. In addition, these exposures have been linked to certain types of cancer (i.e.mesothelioma, lung, throat, etc.) Railroad companies knew of these dangers to their workers at least as far back as the 1930′s but failed to take any action to protect their employees. Our firm has compiled extensive proof of the railroad companies’ negligence by not protecting employees from the known dangers of these exposures. Our “position of strength” negotiation ability is a result of our vast experience. In fact, other FELA law firms often refer these types of cases to us because of our stellar reputation at resolving them, despite their complicated nature.

That is why we recommend that you speak with a railroad physical injury lawyer at our firm to discuss your case, the legal issues involved, and your options for pursuing damages through a claim or lawsuit. Let a knowledgeable attorney help you understand physical injury laws regarding railroads.

Contact a railroad physical injury lawyer at the firm for a free consultation today.

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