Title 45 — RailroadsRelease 119-73not60
§52 Carriers in Territories or Other Possessions of United States
Title 45 › Chapter 2— LIABILITY FOR INJURIES TO EMPLOYEES › § 52
Summary
Railroad carriers in U.S. Territories, the District of Columbia, the Panama Canal Zone, or other U.S. possessions must pay damages to employees injured while working there. If an employee dies, payment goes to a personal representative for spouse and children; if none, to parents; if none, to dependent next of kin. The carrier is liable when the harm was caused wholly or partly by its officers, agents, or employees, or by negligent defects in its equipment.
Full Legal Text
Title 45, §52
Railroads — Source: USLM XML via OLRC
Every common carrier by railroad in the Territories, the District of Columbia, the Panama Canal Zone, or other possessions of the United States shall be liable in damages to any person suffering injury while he is employed by such carrier in any of said jurisdictions, or, in case of the death of such employee, to his or her personal representative, for the benefit of the surviving widow or husband and children of such employee; and, if none, then of such employee’s parents; and, if none, then of the next of kin dependent upon such employee, for such injury or death resulting in whole or in part from the negligence of any of the officers, agents, or employees of such carrier, or by reason of any defect or insufficiency, due to its negligence, in its cars, engines, appliances, machinery, track, roadbed, works, boats, wharves, or other equipment.
Reference
Citations & Metadata
Citation
45 U.S.C. § 52
Title 45 — Railroads
Last Updated
Apr 5, 2026
Release point: 119-73not60