Nebraska Mesothelioma Lawyer and Legal Information

Many asbestos-related lawsuits filed in Nebraska district courts over the past several years have been suits filed under the Federal Employee Liability Act, which preserves the right of railroad workers and other federal employees to sue for compensation for occupational injuries and illnesses. Railroad workers are generally not covered under state workers' compensation. Suing under FELA is often the only way to get disability and compensation for damages for work-related injuries. In order to claim for benefits under FELA, an employee must prove fault or negligence on the part of his or her employer.

Determination of Liability

Nebraska courts determine whether damages should be paid using a modified comparative liability - 50 percent rule. Under the Nebraska system, a plaintiff would be able to collect some damages even if they've been found to share the fault for causing their own injury as long as their fault does not exceed 50 percent. Thus, if a jury determines that the damages in a case amount to $100,000 and that the plaintiff was 45 percent responsible for his or her own injury, then plaintiff can still recover $55,000 - the amount of damages reduced by the percentage of fault apportioned to the plaintiff.

In cases with multiple defendants, Nebraska courts apportion the judgment using a modified joint and several liability system. Joint and several liability applies to economic damages like lost wages and medical expenses, or in cases where defendants are determined to have acted in consort to harm the plaintiff. Non-economic damages such as pain and suffering are subject to several liability only. Under several liability, a defendant is only liable for the percentage of the damages that is equal to the percentage of their fault for the injury.

Nebraska Asbestos Litigation

Since 2002, nearly every case filed in Nebraska district federal court has been a suit for compensation under the FELA law for occupational illnesses. Most of those FELA suits are filed against the BNSF Railway Company. In their 2005 annual report, BNSF noted that claims for asbestos-related occupational illnesses were growing more frequently. BNSF used asbestos in and around steam locomotives from about 1950 to 1967, and admit that other exposures to asbestos occurred until asbestos-containing products were phased around 1985.

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