Federal Employers Liability Act (FELA) - What is FELA?

The Federal Employers  Liability Act was passed by Congress in 1908, for the purpose of  providing compensation to railroad employees who are injured on the job. It enables injured employees to bring claims directly against their  employers where it can be shown that it was the railroad's negligence  that caused the injury.

Negligence is defined as  the railroad's failure to exercise reasonable care in its obligation to  the employee. It could be as a result of not providing a safe place to  work, proper tools and equipment to do the job, or adequate help or  training. The courts have held that the employer's negligence does not  have to be the sole cause of the accident. So long as the carrier was at fault in the slightest degree it is enough to establish the right to  bring a claim.

If the employee was also  at fault in causing the accident the jury can reduce his award by the  percentage that he was at fault. For example, if the damages totaled  $100,000.00 but it was determined that the employee was 25% at fault,  the net award would be $75,000.00. Under the FELA the injured employee  may file a lawsuit in the state or federal courts and have a jury decide the damages, if any, to which he is entitled. Unless the claim is  settled the lawsuit must be filed within three years of the date of the  accident.

As distinguished from  state workman's compensation laws, there is no schedule of benefits,  whether weekly or otherwise to which an employee is entitled. Instead  there are elements that determine damages. They include lost wages, pain and suffering, permanency of injury and effect on life style, future  pain and suffering, future lost wages, and out-of-pocket expenses  including medical costs.

Usually the damages under  the FELA can be significantly greater than that which would normally be  collected if under workmen's compensation. Because the FELA involves  bringing a claim directly against the employer, the railroads make every effort to keep the amount they pay out as low as possible.

In order to counter this,  and because it is a specialized area of the law, the BLET has appointed  "designated counsel" around the country to whom members can go for  guidance, advice, and representation. They are all experienced in  handling FELA claims.
 

BLET Advisory Board Revises FELA Counsel Program

CLEVELAND, March 7 2012 — The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen’s Advisory Board has adopted revisions to the Union’s program that provides assistance to BLET members injured on the job, who may be entitled to damages pursuant to the Federal Employers’ Liability Act (FELA).

For nearly 30 years, the BLET has maintained a list of experienced personal injury lawyers so that the Union’s members would have available to them competent, principled legal counsel to assist in the handling of their claims for personal injuries incurred during the course of their railroad employment. This list, commonly known as BLET’s Designated Legal Counsel (DLC), was created and maintained as part of the Union’s mission to “advance the working conditions, wages, benefits, job security, and quality of life for its present and future members and their families.”

In 2010, the Advisory Board revised its criteria for becoming a DLC, developed various Rules of Conduct with which DLCs would be expected to comport themselves insofar as it relates to their DLC status, and issued a formal Protocol to that effect. Now, after two years of experience administering that Protocol, the Advisory Board has decided that the National Division will discontinue formally designating attorneys and instead will refer its members to the directory of the Academy of Rail Labor Attorneys (ARLA), an organization made up exclusively of lawyers who represent injured employees under the FELA.

By relinquishing the role of designator and referring employees to the ARLA directory, BLET is expanding the number of attorneys available to its members requiring legal representation. ARLA maintains its own Constitution which, along with the rules of conduct and ethics issued by the states in which ARLA attorneys practice law, assures BLET members, as well as BLET can, that the attorneys they choose to represent them will maintain the standards required by ARLA. Furthermore, this change relieves BLET from expending considerable time and resources necessary to administer the Protocol and the frequent controversies associated therewith.

With this announcement, BLET is issuing a separate set of inquiries that it recommends injured BLET members should use when deciding which personal injury attorney will best represent their interests. The Union is convinced that with answers to these inquiries in hand, and the confidence that attorneys who belong to ARLA offer the knowledge of the industry that is essential to effectively presenting injured employees’ claims, BLET members will be able to continue to receive the high quality of representation they previously have received under the formal DLC Program.

National President Dennis R. Pierce thanked the Advisory Board for its willingness to make the difficult decisions necessary to advance the interests of BLET’s membership. “This was not an easy decision for the Board to make,” said Pierce, “especially because the long-standing existence of the program may have created certain expectations among BLET members and some attorneys. The BLET membership elected this Board with the anticipation that they would lead on key issues. Time and time again, this Board has done just that on the key issues of importance to our membership.”

“Ultimately, our program is intended to provide reliable assistance to our membership through a totally transparent process,” Pierce added. “That goal is what guided the Advisory Board’s decision and I applaud them for making a tough call.”

Additional information concerning the ARLA directory will be published in an upcoming News Flash on the BLET website.
 

Recommendations for BLET Members When Selecting a Personal Injury Lawyer:

(Click here to download this reference as a PDF file.)

BLET members who are injured on the job possess valuable rights under the Federal Employers’ Liability Act (FELA).    There are many competent personal injury lawyers who can assist you in protecting those rights and recovering damages from your railroad employer to compensate you
for the harm such injuries cause you.    The BLET recommends that you contact a lawyer who is a member of the Academy of Rail Labor Attorneys (ARLA), a group of personal injury lawyers who specialize in representing injured railroad workers in FELA cases.    Here is a list of questions to assist you in deciding which lawyer can best represent your interests:

• Does the attorney have an established record of successful litigation experience?
• How many FELA cases has the attorney tried before jury?
• What is the attorney’s success record at trial?
• Has the attorney tried cases involving the same injury you have suffered?
• Has the attorney tried cases against the same railroad?
• Will the attorney provide you with the names of other railroad employees he/she has represented so that you can ask them about their experiences with the attorney before you decide whom to retain?
• Does the attorney maintain current malpractice insurance in the amount of at least $1,000,000 per occurrence?
• Does the attorney maintain membership in good standing in the bar of the state in which he or she practices law?
• Has the attorney been suspended or disbarred from the practice of law in any state?
• Will the attorney give injured members free advice in connection with their injury, and render assistance to them in related matters (RUIA, etc.)?
• Will the attorney agree not charge to you more than 25% of the gross settlement or award, or 33 1/3% of the net settlement or award?
• Are the costs you will be charged reasonable and incurred as a direct result of representing you?
• Will you have to pay for those costs during the prosecution of your case or will they be taken out of any settlement or verdict at the end of the case?
• Will you be given, in written form, a full accounting and breakdown of all expenses incurred, fees charged, or any other expenditures or deductions from the proceeds of any settlement or verdict?
• Will you have to pay anything if you lose?
• How will the attorney conduct the investigation and prosecution of your case?
• Will the attorney personally represent you or will he/she refer your case to another attorney for handling?  If the latter, will the attorney you retain keep control of the case and remain fully responsible and accountable to you?  
• Will you have the right to meet with and approve the other attorney?
• Does the attorney take an active part in matters of concern to railroad employees and the rail industry, including supporting the legislative programs of the BLET?

You certainly will have other questions that you consider relevant.    Do not limit yourself to these. Don’t be pressured into making a decision.    Only retain an attorney whom you feel fully comfortable is the one who will best represent your interests in a manner which you consider acceptable.

BLET members should be aware that all attorneys are prohibited from engaging, either directly or indirectly, in Union politics at any level of the BLET (the National Division, the General Committees of Adjustment, the Local Divisions, and the National and State Legislative Boards).They may not contribute financially to the campaign of any candidate for union office, promote or otherwise seek support for or against a candidate, nor in any way attempt to influence any Union election or vote on any Union issue.

No BLET officer or employee at any level of the Union is permitted to accept from any attorney any permissible gratuity, payment or gift of any more than $250 in the aggregate during any calendar year.    (“Gratuity, payment or gift” includes both money, tangible items, and services of any kind.)    Further, no BLET officer or employee, at any level of the Union, is allowed to accept (a) any gratuity, payment or gift of any amount from any lawyer for the purpose of obtaining representation of an injured member or (b) any portion of any attorney’s fee earned in connection with representing any BLET member

Additional Information regarding BLET FELA Counsel Program

Code of Compliance for BLET Officers and Employees Concerning Relationships with Employers and Legal Counsel Representing or Seeking to Represent Injured BLET Members, Revised February 29, 2012 (PDF 2 pages)

Resolution Regarding 2012 Revision to BLET FELA Counsel Program (PDF, 2 pages)

Statement Regarding 2012 Revision to BLET FELA Counsel Program (PDF, 1 page)