BNSF RAILWAY COMPANY Missouri Cases

Douglas Overfield, a locomotive engineer, sued BNSF Railway Company under the Federal Employers' Liability Act (FELA) for injuries sustained when his reflective vest snagged on a door handle. A jury awarded Overfield $2.75 million. BNSF appealed, arguing the verdict director was improper due to disjunctive bases lacking substantial evidence and constituting a roving commission, and that the trial court erred in refusing a withdrawal instruction. The appellate court affirmed the trial court's judgment, finding no instructional error as the verdict director was supported by substantial evidence and was not a roving commission, and the withdrawal instruction was properly refused.

Stephen C. Wynn, a BNSF Railway Company conductor, sued BNSF under FELA after being injured in a train collision with an unoccupied car on the tracks. A jury found in Wynn's favor, awarding $3,500,000 in damages. BNSF appealed, alleging error in the submission and refusal of various jury instructions. The appellate court affirmed the trial court's judgment, finding no reversible error in the submitted instructions and upholding the refusal of BNSF's proposed mitigation of damages instruction.

Plaintiff Jamie Mitchell was injured twice while switching railcars for BNSF Railway Company, leading to a FELA petition asserting strict liability under the Safety Appliance Act (SAA) and general negligence claims. The jury found for Mitchell on all counts, and the trial court entered judgment based on the SAA claims. On appeal, BNSF argued the SAA did not apply because the railcars were not "in use" at the time of injury and that other trial errors warranted a new trial. The appellate court affirmed the judgment, holding that both railcars were "in use" under the SAA and that any alleged trial errors were non-prejudicial given the strict liability findings.

Sherry Spence sued BNSF Railway Company for the wrongful death of her husband, who was killed when a train struck his truck. A jury found BNSF negligent for failing to trim vegetation and for its train crew's actions, awarding Spence $20 million. BNSF appealed, arguing the trial court erred in denying a new trial based on juror nondisclosure, improper jury instructions, and denial of a mistrial during opening statements. The Missouri Supreme Court affirmed the judgment, finding BNSF waived its juror nondisclosure claim and that the jury instructions and denial of mistrial were proper.