Burns White attorneys Dan Hampton and Nicole Bazzy obtained a nonsuit on behalf of a Railroad Defendant, in a trial in the Court of Common Pleas of Philadelphia County.
Plaintiff, a railroad conductor, alleged in his lawsuit that he developed cumulative trauma injuries to his knees, resulting in bilateral knee surgeries, as a result of walking on ballast and climbing on and off locomotives and rail cars during his railroad employment. Plaintiff retained an expert in occupational medicine, who opined that Plaintiff’s work for the railroad caused his knee injuries.
Prior to the commencement of trial, Judge Ann Butchart, of the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas, heard argument on a motion to exclude the expert’s testimony, but deferred her ruling on the Motion. Following cross-examination of the expert, and the close of Plaintiff’s evidence, Judge Butchart ruled that the expert had failed to cite to any scientific literature in support of his medical causation opinion, and that he had not established that his opinions were the result of a reliable scientific methodology. Because Plaintiff was unable to proceed with his case without evidence of medical causation, the judge granted a Motion for Nonsuit, dismissing Plaintiff’s claims.