Knight Nicastro Success: Anthony Pantoja v. BNSF

Chad Knight was asked defend this case six weeks before trial. Over those six weeks, the team he led completed a year’s worth of discovery that had not been completed, including deposing nearly two dozen witnesses and working through thousands of pages of documents. The plaintiff claimed to be disabled from a back injury caused by operating vehicles over poorly maintained roads in a rail yard over a 30-year career. Plaintiff tried to cherry-pick certain statements made by employees about poor conditions and a supposed lack of response by the company. Chad took the plaintiff’s best evidence head on and and showed how it fit into a bigger story. All of the crafts at this rail yard collectively participated in providing a safe work environment. The roadways received extensive wear and tear but the trial team proved that there was a comprehensive program in place to constantly maintain the roads, as well as procedures that encouraged reporting of concerns and ensured that resources were timely directed to those concerns. After a two-week trial, the jury returned a defense verdict.