Why You Call BLET Designated Legal Counsel

(and why it should be the first thing you do)

BLET Designated Legal Counsel (DLC) are a group of attorneys who understand and are practiced under the Federal Employers Liability Act (FELA). FELA is the law applied when railroad workers are injured on the job. Many states have worker’s compensation laws, but those laws do not apply to railroad injuries. The lawyer down the street may know how to represent someone in a worker’s compensation claim, but probably knows nothing about how to represent a railroad employee under FELA.

When an accident or injury occurs on the job, the first thing you should do is contact a BLET Designated Attorney. They not only respond immediately, they also provide valuable information to help you in the event the case goes to court. Their role is to not only protect you from the unscrupulous practices of the Carrier’s Claims Agents, but to also preserve any evidence you might need in the future. One of the agreements they make in order to become “Designated Counsel” is to offer free advice. You are under no obligation to hire designated counsel, but because of their expertise, you would be well-served by doing so in the event it becomes necessary.

Designated Counsel helps out the BLET in other ways, too. They attend the Regional Conventions every year, and educate our members regarding FELA law, current trends, and current practices. Not only do they provide invaluable information, they also have a designated fund set up to help defray some of the costs of the regional conventions.

The attorneys who make up the BLET Designated Counsel are very estute as well. They know how difficult it sometimes is to be the spouse of an engineer, and they do their best to get information to spouses, as well as families. They also work closely with the Auxiliary in our efforts to educate, sponsoring informational seminars geared toward the type of information we need in the event an accident, injury or, God forbid, a death occurs.

A current listing of BLET DLCs is contained in this packet, and many of the law firms have websites and email. We urge you to visit them to learn more about what they can do for you and your spouse.