There is sad news for fans of the “Survivor” television series. Caleb Bankston a contestant on the show in 2013 was crushed between two railroad cars. He was an engineer for the Alabama Warrior Railway. While checking on something between two cars, the train derailed crushing Bankston in between.
One news report described the railroad accident as a “freak accident.” Unfortunately as railroad injury lawyers we know that getting trapped and injured or killed between rail cars is a constant danger for engineers, trainmen, switchmen and conductors in rail yards and on tracks. Having represented many rail employees who suffered serious, life-altering injuries while doing their railroad jobs, we know firsthand that any accident in a rail yard can cause serious if not fatal injury.
Family members like the general public may think that these type of railroad accidents are a rare occurrence. They may not know that their loved one has unique legal rights available to injured rail workers, including the rights available under the Federal Employers Liability Act, as long as the railroad conducts any interstate commerce whatsoever. But whether it was a railroad accident or disease, a derailment, or a railroad crossing accident speaking with an experienced railroad injury lawyer is the first step. {Click here for two downloadable legal guides that focus on railroad worker injury law} Our railroad injury attorneys have handled railroad injury law since 1985 and we have represented hundreds of railroad workers.
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Rick Shapiro has practiced personal injury law for over 30 years in Virginia, North Carolina, and throughout the Southeastern United States. He is a Board-Certified Civil Trial Advocate by the National Board of Trial Advocacy (ABA Accredited) and has litigated injury cases throughout the eastern United States, including wrongful death, trucking, faulty products, railroad, and medical negligence claims. During his three-decade career, Shapiro has won client appeals before the VA Supreme Court, VA Court of Appeals, NC Supreme Court, SC Supreme Court, WV Supreme Court, TN Supreme Court, and three times before the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, underscoring Shapiro’s trial achievements. In addition, he and his law firm have won settlements/verdicts in excess of $100 million. His success in and out of the courtroom is a big reason why he was named 2019 “Lawyer of the Year” in railroad law in U.S. News & World Report's Best Lawyers publication (Norfolk, VA area), and he has been named a “Best Lawyer” and “Super Lawyer” by those peer-reviewed organizations for multiple years. Rick was also named a “Leader in the Law, Class of 2022” by Virginia Lawyers Weekly (total of 33 statewide honorees consisting of lawyers and judges across Virginia). And in September 2023, Rick was selected as a recipient of the National Board of Trial Advocacy (NBTA) 2023 President’s Award. Although many nominations were submitted from across the country, Rick was just one of eight attorneys chosen by the prestigious National Board which certifies civil trial attorneys across the U.S. Rick was also recently named to Virginia Lawyers Weekly 2024 Virginia’s Go To Lawyers Medical Malpractice. The attorneys awarded this honor are nominated by their colleagues and chosen by a panel from the publication.
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