US Supreme Court to consider lawsuit against railway

By: Associated Press//January 23, 2015//

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WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. Supreme Court will consider whether a California woman whose legs were crushed while boarding a train in Austria can sue the Austrian national railway in a U.S. court.

The justices agreed Friday to hear an appeal from Austrian-owned railroad company OBB-Personenverkehr AG, which says U.S. courts have no authority to hear the case.

Federal law generally prevents foreign governments from being sued in American courts. But a divided federal appeals court ruled that Carol Sachs could pursue her personal injury claim against the railroad company because she purchased her train ticket from a Massachusetts-based Internet site.

The appeals court said the railroad company was involved in commercial activity in the United States by selling tickets through a travel agent.

The Supreme Court will hear the case this spring.

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