Kristofer S. Riddle, partner at Clifford Law Offices, obtained a total of $13,045,000 in settlements surrounding the September 25, 2021, derailment of Amtrak’s Empire Builder Train 7 outside Joplin, Montana, which was finalized on March 31, 2026.
The settlement concludes the cases filed by Clifford Law Offices in the federal district court that involved the derailment of eight of Train 7’s passenger cars due to poor track conditions, including worn rail, vertical track deflection, subgrade instability, and track misalignment. The train, traveling on track owned and maintained by the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway (BNSF) at the time of the derailment, left three dead and dozens of people with injuries. The occupant protections that did not restrain passengers and the failure of the window retention systems contributed to the severity of the passengers’ injuries, according to the findings of the National Transportation Safety Board.
Clifford Law Offices represented several people injured in the derailment.
For further information, contact Clifford Law Offices Communications Partner Pamela Sakowicz Menaker at 847-721-0909 (cell) or pammenaker@cliffordlaw.com.