Knock Knock

goDown
Article by Scott Brede, The Connecticut Law Tribune

George J. Cahill, Jr. of New Haven’s Cahill, & DiPersia is the first to admit that Metro-North Commuter Railroad claims agents don’t exactly relish his visits.

After all, their face-to-face dealings with his firm tend to carry a certain message: Pay up and pay up now. And watching a sheriff seize a commuter train on the spot — yes, it’s been done before — is hardly Metro-North’s idea of an enjoyable afternoon. Still their latest encounter left even Cahill a bit shocked, he says.

“I don’t know what they thought they could accomplish by locking their doors and hiding inside,” says Cahill.

Along with partner and a trusty deputy sheriff, Cahill went Nov. 13 to Metro-North’s claims office at New Haven’s rail station. The purpose of the visit was to collect a $59,000 jury verdict awarded in July to James Sorrentino, an injured Metro-North engineer the firm represented.

Claims officials apparently spotted Cahill and deputy sheriff Ronald Mangano as they crossed the street to the train station, Cahill says. When the trio reached the claims office, the door was locked. Other Metro-North employees told them the claims agents were in the office, but nobody responded to their knocking.

The standoff ended nearly three hours later when Metro-North officials finally agreed to let Mangano serve them a writ of execution.

Cahill says he knew the claims agents couldn’t hold out forever. The nearest bathroom is down the hall from their office, and “eventually nature would have to call,” he says.

Still, he’s not quite sure what led them to unlock the door, and Metro-North defense counsel John A. Blazi, a Waterbury solo, declines to comment on the matter.

During a 1993 payment dispute, and another deputy sheriff commandeered a Metro-North train just before it prepared to leave for New York. Not so on Nov. 13. Cahill says he left the station that evening with only a promise to receive a check the next day for the full amount of the award plus a sheriff’s fee of nearly $6,000.

The check came a day late — and only after Cahill threatened to have Mangano seize about a half-dozen motor vehicles used by Metro-North supervisors, he says.

His strong arm tactics, Cahill adds, became necessary after months of nagging Metro-North to fork over the amount due Sorrentino.

Following the verdict, the company unsuccessfully sought to deduct from the judgment the portion of Sorrentino’s medical expenses that it incurred, he says.

Metro-North later sent Cahill about $14,000 subtracting the sick pay Sorrentino collected while recuperating from his injury, Cahill says. A judge denied that “novel” attempt to reduce payment, he adds.

By October, “it was apparent they were not going to pay the full judgment.” That, Cahill says, is when he gave Metro-North an ultimatum: Pay up by Nov. 13 or prepare for a sheriff’s visit. The company chose the latter.

  • $10.8 Million Verdict for a Metro-North Conductor wrongful death case. (Avery v. Metro-North RR).
  • $8 Million settlement for an Amtrak Trackman who sustained a crushed leg. (Cevasco v. National Railroad Passenger Corp.).
  • $7 Million settlement for a Metro-North Foreman whose legs were amputated. (Renert v. Metro-North RR).
  • $5.8 Million settlement for an Amtrak Conductor who sustained a head injury. (Fitzpatrick v. National Railroad Passenger Corp.).
  • $5.5 Million settlement for a Metro-North Machinist wrongful death case. (Pieger v. Metro-North RR).
  • $4.3 Million Verdict for a Metro-North Conductor wrongful death case. (Ard v. Metro-North RR)
  • $2.57 Million Verdict for an Amtrak Conductor who sustained a back injury. (Pace v. National Railroad Passenger Corp.).
  • $2.5 Million Settlement for a Metro-North employee who sustained a serious head injury.
  • Settled for a Confidential Sum for a Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad Company Trackman wrongful death case. (Macaulay v. Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad Company.)
  • $6.250 Million Verdict in 2023 which was later reduced to $2.1 Million for a Metro-North Structural Welder/Ironworker who sustained head and neck injuries and has returned to work. (Torres v. Metro-North RR).
  • $2 Million Verdict for a Metro-North Lineman who sustained an electrical burn (Curly v. Metro-North RR).
  • $2 Million Settlement in 2020 for a Providence & Worcester Railroad Company Conductor who sustained a serious head injury and returned to work for another RR as an Engineer. (Scarpa v. Providence & Worcester Railroad Company.)
  • $2 Million Settlement for a Metro-North Conductor who sustained a fractured leg.
    Settled for a Confidential Sum in 2019 an Amtrak Lineman involving an electrocution causing a permanent occupational disability. (Anderson v. National Railroad Passenger Corp.).
  • $1.85 Million Verdict for an Amtrak Ticket Agent who was assaulted. (Schneider v. National Railroad Passenger Corp.)
  • Compensatory and punitive damages Verdicts and subsequently settled for $1.8 Million in 2023 for a Metro-North
  • Conductor who suffered Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. (Moran v. Metropolitan Transportation Authority).
  • $1.69 Million Settlement for an Amtrak Supervisor who was shot by an employee. (Cornelius v. National Railroad Passenger Corp.)
  • $1.65 Million Verdict for a Metro-North Lineman who sustained foot and ankle injuries. (Keating v. Metro-North RR).
  • $1.65 Million Verdict for a Metro-North TA Employee who sustained an Open Tibia Fracture to his left leg. (Rivera v. Metro-North RR).
  • $1.54 Million Verdict for an Amtrak General Foreman who sustained a herniated disc in his lower back. (Brady v. National Railroad Passenger Corporation).
  • $1.45 Million Verdict for a Construction Worker who sustained a left hip injury. (Quintiliani v. National Railroad Passenger Corporation).
  • $1.42 Million Verdict for a Metro-North Machinist who sustained a fractured rib and a herniated disc. (Hall v. Metro-North RR).
  • $1.4 Million Verdict for a Metro-North Mechanical Gang Foreman who sustained burns from an explosion of steam on an engine. (Berry v. Metro-North RR).
  • $1.4 Million Verdict for a Metro-North Carpenter Foreman who sustained a back injury. (Kendall v. Metro-North RR).
  • $1.3 Million Verdict for a Metro-North Signal Trainee Maintainer who sustained a back injury from a slip and fall. (Moran v. Metro-North RR).
  • $1.2 Million Verdict for a Metro-North Signal Maintainer who sustained a back injury and post-concussion syndrome. (Manes v. Metro-North RR).
  • $1.2 Million Verdict for a Metro-North Trackman who sustained crushed legs. (Murillo v. Metro-North RR).
  • $1 Million Settlement for a Metro-North Trackman who sustained burns from pot welding and subsequently returned to work. (Burke v. Metro-North RR).

find yourself a Railroad Law Attorney | Call 800-654-7245

CALL OR EMAIL US TODAY TO GET STARTED

If you are a railroad worker who has been injured on the job, you need a lawyer who understands the complicated FELA claims process. Find out how we can help you receive the compensation you deserve.

Protecting Injured Railroad Workers,
Passengers And Families
40 years of experience

New Haven Office

43 Trumbull Street
New Haven, CT 06510
Toll Free: 800-654-7245

Phone: 203-777-1000
Fax: 203-865-5904
directions

Boston Office

470 Atlantic Avenue, 4th Floor
Boston, MA 02210

Phone: (617) 217-2920
directions

arla

New York Office

Chrysler Building
405 Lexington Avenue, 26th Floor
New York, NY 10174

Toll Free: 800-654-7245
Phone: 212-453-7300
directions

connect with us