A divided Missouri appellate panel has upheld a $12 million jury verdict in favor of a Kansas City Southern Railway switchman who was run over by a train in Illinois. The verdict now stands as one of largest railroad injury verdicts in St. Louis County’s history.
In a 2-1 ruling, the majority rejected claims by Kansas City Southern Railway, represented by Husch Blackwell, that St. Louis County Circuit Judge David Lee Vincent III erred in finding the defendant was not entitled to a contributory negligence defense on a negligence per se theory brought by the plaintiff, Christopher Cole. The Eastern District of Missouri Court of Appeals issued the ruling in Cole v. The Kansas City Southern Railway Company Tuesday.
