Charles E. Ross and D. Jason Childress defended their railroad client’s right to a federal forum on the grounds of complete diversity in a lawsuit purportedly brought under the Federal Employers’ Liability Act (the “FELA”) by an employee of an independent contractor performing bridge repairs on the railroad’s line.

As a general rule, defendants are statutorily barred from removing to federal courts lawsuits filed under FELA. However, after conducting remand-related discovery the railroad argued, and the court agreed, that the plaintiff had no reasonable possibility of establishing a FELA claim against the railroad. Therefore, the court dismissed plaintiff’s FELA claim and denied his motion to remand.