Railroad Injuries Litigation
If you or a loved one was injured in a rail accident you may be entitled to compensation. These damages can cover the future and past medical costs as well as lost earnings permanent disability, disfigurement and lost wages.
Federal law FELA (Federal Employers' Liability Act), protects railroad workers. railroad injury lawsuit provides financial compensation for pain and suffering that is not covered by state laws on workers' compensation.
Prompt Reporting
An injury claim that is unreported can make an enormous difference in an employee's capacity to receive medical treatment. NCCI research has found that the longer an injury is unreported, the greater the likelihood that a claim will remain open and unpaid.
Railroads are required to ensure that their employees have safe places to work and that all their tools and equipment are safe to be used. If it violates this duty and the employee is found to be in violation, the employee has the right to file a lawsuit against the railroad for damages.
Railroad safety rules require railroad employees to report any injuries. However, it can be difficult to convince an injured worker to report the injury. It is crucial that an employee immediately disclose the injury to the employer and seeks legal advice from an attorney.
In addition to their obligation to ensure that employees are safe in their workplace railways are also required to provide efficient and prompt medical care. The prompt treatment of medical issues can prevent injuries from becoming more serious and more expensive to treat.
Furthermore, under FELA, railroads are required to pay the cost of all medical treatment for an employee who is injured on the job. This includes transportation to and from the doctor's office , as prescription medications and treatment for any resulting physical or mental ailments.
These records and all other evidence gathered during the investigation or the treatment of a case must be maintained by the railroad. Infractions to the railroad's regulations could result in severe discipline, including discharge from the job.
Another federal law that protects railroad workers is the Federal Railroad Safety Act. It is illegal for a railroad to take adverse action against a railroad employee who engages in "protected activities," which include whistleblowing.
If you've been a whistleblower or being subjected to retaliation for your actions, get in touch with Rossi Vucinovich PC right away. Our experienced attorneys can help you fight back against railroad retaliation as well as pursue justice.
A railroad must provide an adequate amount of time to report any accident or incident that involves an employee to the FRA (National Transportation Safety Board) (NTSB). While railroads are generally cautious regarding reporting accidents and incidents, it is not uncommon that they fail to report these incidents.
FELA
Railroad employees in the United States are protected by the Federal Employers' Liability Act. The law was designed to protect workers from deaths and injuries by shifting the financial burden from individual workers to railroads.
The FELA sets out the legal obligations that railroads have to meet which include providing safe work areas, properly educating workers as well as examining for hazards and enforcing safety regulations. Infractions to these regulations could result in railroad companies being held accountable for negligence.
FELA is a powerful tool to safeguard injured workers, but it also comes with its own challenges. First, the railroad has to be proven negligent by the worker. This is typically simpler in an FELA case than in a traditional personal injury lawsuit.
Railroad workers must also prove that their employer violated any safety rules or statutes in the state or federal. If a railroad is found to have violated any of these laws, an employee can easily prove that it caused their injury and therefore is responsible under FELA.
Finally, a railroad worker must prove that the injury they sustained was permanent. This is important because an injury that is permanent is generally more valuable than one that is not.
Moreover, many types of workplace accidents can result in severe long-term damage, such as traumatic injuries such as broken bones and muscles, pulled muscles, lacerations and joint sprains. Repetitive motion injuries, such as carpal tunnel syndrome or tendinitis may also aggravate or exacerbate existing medical ailments.
If you have to deal with a an extensive, complicated and potentially costly claim against railroads, it is important to work with an experienced FELA attorney. A typical personal injury lawyer is not able to deal with the huge amount of knowledge and resources railroads have.
Comparative Negligence
In the case of railroad injuries one of the biggest issues is to determine who was responsible for an accident. It can be difficult to assign blame in certain instances but with the aid of comparative negligence both parties can come to an accurate result which will benefit both.
Comparative negligence is a legal mechanism that permits parties involved in a car crash to apportion liability in proportion of their contributions to the incident. This allows you to calculate damages in the event of multi-car collisions or pile-up crashes.
Drivers who fail to be aware of traffic rules like an intersection stop sign, can be held accountable for the accident in a case of comparative negligence. This is particularly relevant in railroad injury litigation, where the failure of a company to maintain or repair its equipment could be considered to be a contributing factor to the worker's injuries.
Three types of comparative negligence exist in the United States: modified, pure, and contributory. All three are applicable in a specific way however the most prevalent is the modified one.
A modified comparative negligence system can allow an injured party to recover damages in cash, provided that the percentage of fault is not more than 50% or is greater than the percentage of another defendant or group. This rule is not applicable to personal injury claims in most states.
The system is based on the theory of negligence and examines the four elements of negligence: breach of duty, breach, duty of care and causation. An experienced attorney must prove these elements in order to achieve a favorable outcome for the plaintiff.
Contrary to contributory negligence which is only recognized in five states, pure negligence by comparison is the law in the majority of states. This rule allows an injured party to claim compensation even if they are determined to be 99% at fault. It is called pure comparative negligence in New York, but only thirteen other states apply it.
Damages
Railroad workers are entitled to compensation in the event of being injured while working. Federal Employers Liability (FELA) is the law that governs workers' rights.
An employee must show that the employer was negligent in FELA cases. If this is the situation, the employee could be entitled to compensation for medical expenses, lost earnings and other damages.
Contrary to state workers' compensation systems that use damage caps to restrict the amount an employee can receive, FELA allows injured workers to receive compensation for all non-economic losses. This includes suffering, pain, loss of enjoyment emotional distress, disability and other losses.
The damages railroad workers can seek depend on the nature of the injury or death. If the train driver dies in an accident on the tracks and family members can sue for wrongful deaths and damages for loss of companionship or support.
Furthermore, if the train driver died because of carelessness on the part another party, then the person who caused the accident could be held accountable for the death the train driver. This could include a vehicle owner or operator, a pedestrian, or even the driver's family members.
The employer could also be liable in the event that a railway worker gets injured while working on a train or track. Employers could also be held accountable for injuries sustained by employees who were under the influence of alcohol or drugs when the accident occurred.
Federal laws that regulate safety of railroads include the Boiler Inspection Act, and the Railroad Safety Act. These laws establish safety standards for trains as well as rail cars.
For example The Railroad Safety Act requires that railroads inspect their trains in order to make sure that they're operating properly and in line with their specifications. This is to ensure the safety and well-being of the general public when trains travel on tracks.