Bozeman, MontanaBozeman Railroad and FELA
Bozeman Railroad and FELA Lawyers: BNSF Injury Claims on the Bozeman Pass Line and in Gallatin County
Boland Aarab PLLP.
Railroad workers hurt on the job around Bozeman are not covered by workers’ compensation. They bring claims against the railroad under the Federal Employers’ Liability Act, which holds a railroad liable if its negligence played any part in the injury. A FELA case can be filed in Montana state court, including in Bozeman, and the railroad cannot remove it.
Injured working for the railroad in the Gallatin Valley? Contact Boland Aarab PLLP for a free consultation at (406) 315-3737.
What railroad work happens around Bozeman?
The main line through Gallatin County is the former Northern Pacific route that Montana Rail Link operated for more than three decades. Operation of the line returned to BNSF on January 1, 2024. It runs west–east across the valley through Manhattan, Belgrade and Bozeman, then climbs to Bozeman Pass, where trains pass through a tunnel under the summit before dropping toward Livingston.
That geography shapes the injuries we see:
- Mountain-grade operations. Heavy trains on the grades up to the pass put demands on crews, brakes and equipment. Conductors and engineers can be hurt by slack action, sudden stops and defective equipment.
- Track, bridge and tunnel maintenance. Maintenance-of-way crews work on steep ballast, in a mountain tunnel, along river crossings and in winter conditions that can be severe on the pass. Falls, crush injuries, machine injuries and exposure to diesel exhaust and silica dust are common claims.
- Cumulative trauma. Years of rough-riding locomotives, walking on large ballast and repetitive lifting can cause back, knee and shoulder injuries that develop slowly.
- Winter. Snow and ice on walkways, ladders and switches, and cold-weather work in the mountains, raise the risk of slips and falls.
Many railroaders who live in Belgrade, Bozeman and Livingston work across a long territory. A worker who lives in Bozeman may have been hurt in another county, and that affects where the case can be filed.
What happens after a railroad injury near Bozeman?
Reporting. The railroad will require an injury report, usually within a short time. Report the injury, get medical care and keep your own copy of everything you sign. You do not have to give a recorded statement to a claims agent before you talk with a lawyer.
Medical care. Serious trauma in the Gallatin Valley goes first to Bozeman Health Deaconess Regional Medical Center, which the state lists as an ACS Level 3 / State Area Trauma Hospital (DPHHS, Nov. 2025). You have the right to choose your own doctors.
Where the case goes. A FELA claim can be filed in state or federal court. If it is filed in state court in Gallatin County, it goes to the Eighteenth Judicial District Court at the Gallatin County Law and Justice Center, 515 South 16th Avenue, Bozeman (§ 3-5-101, MCA). The railroad cannot remove a FELA case filed in state court (28 U.S.C. § 1445(a)). If the case is filed in federal court, Gallatin County is in the Butte Division, at the Mike Mansfield Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse (D. Mont. L.R. 1.2). An injury east of Bozeman Pass, in Park County, falls in the Billings Division. Choosing the forum is one of the first strategic decisions in a FELA case.
Montana law that applies
FELA is federal law, but Montana courts hear these cases all the time. The key points (see our Montana FELA and railroad injury lawyer page for more):
- “Even the slightest.” The railroad is liable if its negligence played any part, even the slightest, in causing the injury (45 U.S.C. § 51; CSX Transp., Inc. v. McBride, 564 U.S. 685 (2011)).
- Three years to file (45 U.S.C. § 56). For occupational disease and cumulative injury, the clock turns on when the injury manifests itself (Urie v. Thompson, 337 U.S. 163 (1949)).
- Retaliation is illegal. A railroad may not punish you for reporting an injury or a safety hazard. A complaint must be filed with OSHA within 180 days (49 U.S.C. § 20109).
- No workers’ comp cap. FELA damages can include lost wages and earning capacity, medical costs and pain and suffering, reduced by your own share of fault if any.
Why hire a Great Falls firm for a Bozeman case?
Railroad cases are litigated against national railroads with experienced claims departments, and the forum, the experts and the records decide them. We are based in Great Falls and handle FELA cases statewide. Our attorneys travel to Bozeman, Livingston, Butte and wherever the witnesses are for depositions, hearings and trial. We have no Bozeman office; what you get is the lawyers themselves, working the case from start to finish.
The Boland Aarab Way
- We know both court systems. Our attorneys have handled more than 40 cases in the U.S. District Court for the District of Montana over nine years, and Samir Aarab has argued twice before the Ninth Circuit.
- We try cases. More than 4,000 hours in the courtroom, and more than a dozen jury trials in Cascade, Phillips, Meagher and Yellowstone Counties.
- We finish what we try. See our appellate record, which reaches back to 1977.
- We are part of the trial bar. AAJ and MTLA members; Sam Aarab is also a member of Public Justice.
We also handle workplace injury cases in Bozeman and catastrophic injury cases in Bozeman. See our Bozeman personal injury page.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does FELA cover me if I work for BNSF out of Bozeman or Livingston? Yes, if you are a railroad employee injured in the course of your work. FELA covers employees of railroads engaged in interstate commerce, which includes the line through the Gallatin Valley.
Can my FELA case be filed in Bozeman? Often, yes. Where it can be filed depends on where you were hurt and where the railroad does business. If it is filed in the Eighteenth Judicial District Court in Bozeman, the railroad cannot move it to federal court.
I was hurt in the Bozeman Pass tunnel area. Which court covers that? The west side of the pass is in Gallatin County (Butte Division federally); the east side is in Park County (Billings Division). State-court options depend on venue rules, which we review with you.
Is years of back pain from rough track a FELA claim? It can be. Cumulative injuries are covered, and the three-year clock generally starts when you knew or should have known the injury was work-related.
Will reporting my injury get me fired? Retaliation for reporting an injury is against federal law. If it happens, a complaint must be filed with OSHA within 180 days.
Contact Boland Aarab PLLP for a free consultation at (406) 315-3737.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship.
