Opinion ID: 1322827
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: FELA claim

Text: When deciding whether to grant a motion for JNOV in a FELA action, a state court must apply the federal standard. Rogers v. Norfolk S. Corp., 356 S.C. 85, 91, 588 S.E.2d 87, 90 (2003). The federal standard for sufficiency of evidence, which applies to both trial and appellate courts, is the following: the evidence and all reasonable inferences from it are assessed in the light most favorable to the non-moving party ... and the credibility of all evidence favoring the non-moving party is assumed.... Assessed in this way, the evidence must then be of such quality and weight that reasonable and fair-minded men in the exercise of impartial judgment could reasonably return a verdict for the non-moving party.... A mere scintilla of evidence is not sufficient to withstand the challenge. Id. at 91-92, 588 S.E.2d at 90 (internal citations omitted). Therefore, the non-moving party must present more than a scintilla of evidence to establish his claim. Id. at 92, 588 S.E.2d at 90. Under FELA, railroad carriers are liable to their employees for injury resulting, in whole or in part, from the employer's negligence. 45 U.S.C. § 51 (2000). Moreover, a railroad has a non-delegable duty to provide its employees with a safe place to work. [14] Rogers, 356 S.C. at 92, 588 S.E.2d at 90 (citations omitted). This duty, however, extends only to foreseeable dangers. Id. To recover, a plaintiff must prove the common law elements of negligence: duty, breach, causation, and damages. Id. at 91, 588 S.E.2d at 90. Viewing the evidence and its inferences in the light most favorable to Whaley, we find that Whaley presented more than a scintilla of evidence to support a verdict in his favor on the FELA claim. At trial, Whaley presented the testimony of Tony Smith, general chairman for the Eastern Lines General Committee of Adjustment on CSX, who admitted that locomotive cabs become very hot during the summer months. In addition, Larry Koster, chief mechanical officer for CSX, testified that CSX was aware that extreme heat and airflow were issues in locomotives. Finally, Gregory Martin, chief mechanical officer for engineering and quality assurance for CSX, testified that CSX had studied the issue of excessive heat in locomotive cabs. Based on this testimony, we find that Whaley presented more than a scintilla of evidence to establish that CSX knew or, in the exercise of ordinary care, should have known that the conditions inside its locomotives could constitute an unsafe work environment. Therefore, we hold that Whaley presented enough evidence from which a fair-minded juror could differ on whether CSX was negligent and whether that negligence contributed to Whaley's injury.