US Sides With Norfolk Southern in High Court Toxic Exposure Case

Virginia-based Norfolk Southern Railway Co. shouldn’t be subject to a former employee’s personal injury suit in Pennsylvania based only on its registration to do business there, the federal government told the US Supreme Court.

The US has a substantial interest in the case, the government said in a friend of the court brief filed Sept. 2. The “theory of jurisdiction asserted here would allow state courts to hear cases against foreign defendants based on foreign conduct, and thus could affect the United States’ diplomatic relations and foreign trade,” the Department of Justice said.

Robert Mallory alleged exposure to asbestos and ...