FELA Lawyer Serving You Nationwide

Immediately after sustaining an on-the-job injury, you should take the following steps:

1. Verify your immediate superior has taken a report of your injury. It should be brief and factual. Do not let anyone tell you what to say as that may have negative legal ramifications down the line. 
2. Request assistance and advice from your union representative.
3. Talk to a lawyer familiar with FELA, such as the Law Office of H. Chris Christy, PA. Refrain from signing any papers or making any statements to your employer or their insurance adjuster, before you have seen a lawyer! 
4. Get to a doctor ASAP. They do not have to be recommended by the railroad! See a doctor you trust, and inform all medical personnel involved about the nature and extent of your injuries, including a full history of past injuries. If necessary, obtain a note excusing you from work that can be shown to your supervisor. Stay off the job until you are confident that you can safely returning to work without further aggravating your injuries.
5. File the necessary applications for Railroad Retirement Board disability benefits and any supplemental disability benefits provided in your collectively bargained agreement with the Railroad Workers' Union in a timely manner.
6. Get the names, physical addresses, e-mail addresses and phone numbers of all personnel who witnessed your accident.
7. Take photographs, or have them taken for you, of the locations or machinery involved in your accident immediately. 
8. Have photographs taken of visible injuries before they heal.
9. Maintain detailed records of: 

• Lost earnings
• Out-of-pocket expenses
• Nature and extent of your pain and discomfort

Damages recoverable under the FELA vary from case to case. Under the guidelines, potential damages that may be recovered include:

• Wage loss (past and future)
• Out-of-pocket expenses
• Future fringe benefits
• Pain and suffering (past and future)
• Medical expenses (past and future)
• Lost limbs or organs
• Shame or embarrassment due to resulting physical disability, scar, or disfigurement
• Economic loss to your dependents in case of death

That depends on a few crucial factors, such as: 

1. The nature and severity of your injury.
2. Whether your injuries are temporary or permanent.
3. Whether or not your injuries will prevent you from working.
4. The feasibility of returning to your occupation.
5. Monetary losses in the immediate and/or foreseeable future due to the injury.
6. How much pain and suffering you have experienced, or will experience in the future.
7. Whether any prior and/or similar injuries or pre-existing conditions have contributed to your current condition.
8. Whether negligence on the part of the railroad, and to what degree, was a direct cause of your injury.
9. Whether the railroad’s violation of a safety statute or regulation, which may impose strict liability on the railroad for your injuries, was a contributing factor.
10. Whether your conduct played in causing of your injury.

Let's face it, it is in the railroad’s interest to minimize your job-related injuries, provide a bare minimum of medical treatment, and pay out the lowest possible claim for damages. To that end, the railroad has a legal right to have you examined by a doctor they have chosen to determine the severity of your injuries and your ability to return to work. This does not mean you have to see that doctor! 

Should you opt to receive treatment by a company-approved doctor, which is also your right, your whole medical history is in the hands of the company. They can and will use that information to their advantage, usually to lower your claim amount. The law office of Christy Ferguson strongly encourages you to be treated by your own physician instead of the company doctor in cases covered by FELA. 

How long it takes to process a FELA claim can vary widely from case to case. In some instances, taking a lawsuit all the way to federal court might be the best way to go; in others, trying the case locally in Arkansas will yield quicker results. 

The extent or severity of your injury may also contribute to the time involved in processing a FELA claim to its rightful conclusion. A serious back injury requiring surgery obviously will have a greater impact on the sufferer over the long term a broken finger. Bottom line: you should never bow to pressure to settle your claim or bring your case to trail before all parties are in a position to objectively evaluate the severity and long-term implications of your injuries. The Law Office of Christy Ferguson will keep your best interests front and center!