Trustee Turns to Oil Shipper in Lac-Mégantic Litigation, Highlighting Emerging Trend
Posted on Mar 25, 2014 in Energy/Environmental, Investigations, Transportation | Comments Off on Trustee Turns to Oil Shipper in Lac-Mégantic Litigation, Highlighting Emerging Trend
Earlier this year, the bankruptcy trustee for Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Railway filed a Complaint in the adversary proceeding in the Bankruptcy Court for the District of Maine against a crude oil shipper for negligence in allegedly misclassifying the Bakken crude oil it was shipping by rail. According to the Complaint, “Had defendants properly classified, identified and labeled...
Nineteen Illinois Wrongful Death Suits Stemming from Lac-Mégantic Train Derailment Transferred to Maine
Posted on Mar 21, 2014 in Transportation | Comments Off on Nineteen Illinois Wrongful Death Suits Stemming from Lac-Mégantic Train Derailment Transferred to Maine
The U.S. District Court for the District of Maine granted a motion to transfer nineteen wrongful death cases filed in Illinois following the July 6, 2013 derailment of a train carrying Bakken crude oil that exploded and killed 47 people in Lac-Mégantic, Quebec, to the U.S. District Court for the District of Maine “based on the Court’s limited finding that claims against certain of the...
Federal District Court Upholds Indemnity Language Requiring General Contractor To Defend and Indemnify Railroad Company Even Where Railroad Company Is Allegedly Negligent
Posted on Mar 18, 2014 in Litigation, Transportation | Comments Off on Federal District Court Upholds Indemnity Language Requiring General Contractor To Defend and Indemnify Railroad Company Even Where Railroad Company Is Allegedly Negligent
The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York held that D.C. law required a general contractor to pay the defense costs of and indemnify a railroad company in a personal injury suit brought by one of the general contractor’s employees who was injured while working on a bridge owned by the railroad company. The railroad company had rejected the general contractor’s...
California Legislature Calls For Investigation Of Workplace Safety in Airports
Posted on Mar 14, 2014 in OSHA, Transportation | Comments Off on California Legislature Calls For Investigation Of Workplace Safety in Airports
On Friday, California legislators held a press conference calling for committee hearings to assess worker safety at California airports. The death of a baggage handler at Los Angeles International Airport triggered the announcement. Although Cal/OSHA is investigating the death, legislators asked for hearings to ascertain whether this incident is part of a systemic and widespread...
FAA Seeks Comment on Proposed Rule Requiring Drug and Alcohol Testing of Workers Outside United States
Posted on Mar 13, 2014 in Transportation | Comments Off on FAA Seeks Comment on Proposed Rule Requiring Drug and Alcohol Testing of Workers Outside United States
The FAA released an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking seeking comments on a rule that would require drug and alcohol testing of maintenance workers who maintain aircraft operated by U.S. air carriers in facilities located outside of the United States. The rule would apply to FAA-certified foreign repair stations and certain maintenance providers who perform safety-sensitive work...
FAA’s Loss in Drone Case May Spur Agency To Expedite Safety Regulation Process
Posted on Mar 6, 2014 in Transportation | Comments Off on FAA’s Loss in Drone Case May Spur Agency To Expedite Safety Regulation Process
On March 6, a National Transportation and Safety Board ALJ dismissed an FAA enforcement action over the use of a small unmanned aircraft. The ALJ found that the aircraft in question, a modified model airplane, did not fit the FAA’s definition of “aircraft” and, therefore, that the FAA had no authority to regulate. The FAA appealed the ruling to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the...
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