A Montana federal court has permitted a wrongful death lawsuit involving BNSF Railway to advance toward trial, rejecting the company's argument that federal law shields it from liability. U.S. District Judge Brian Morris issued the ruling in the case brought by the estate of Mary Diana Moe, who died of mesothelioma in December 2022.
The legal battle centers on asbestos contamination linked to BNSF’s operations in Libby, Montana. The company operated a downtown railyard in Libby that transported vermiculite ore mined by W.R. Grace from 1963 to 1990. That ore contained asbestos, which contaminated the community over decades of mining and shipping activities.
The current case follows a complex legal history. In 2024, a jury found BNSF strictly liable for the mesothelioma deaths of two other Libby residents and awarded $4 million in compensatory damages to each family. However, the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed that verdict in February 2026.
The appellate court ruled that the common carrier exception protected BNSF from strict liability claims specifically related to its role in transporting vermiculite for W.R. Grace.
Following that reversal, BNSF filed motions for judgment on the pleadings in the Moe case and numerous other related asbestos claims in Libby. The company argued that the Ninth Circuit’s decision barred these lawsuits entirely.
Judge Morris denied the motion, determining that the appellate ruling did not close all avenues for liability. The court found that claims regarding BNSF’s own business activities—such as generating, handling, storing, and failing to control asbestos at its facilities—may fall outside the protection of the common carrier exception.
This distinction separates the company's role as a transporter from its role as an operator managing hazardous materials.
