Testimonials

Railroad Law Attorneys with Proven Results

We measure our success not only in maximizing our client's recovery in a personal injury or wrongful death action, but also by our record of safety improvements that have resulted from our legal work.  Our lawyers work tirelessly to provide the best representation for our clients, which often involves developing unique strategies and exploiting unconventional avenues of litigation. 

Our managing attorney, Robert Pottroff, introduced a new strategy in 2002 for dealing with railroad companies who fail to respond to discovery.  During a trial, Mr. Pottroff stacked ten empty boxes in front of the jury to represent the evidence the railroad company should have provided.  The result was a $30 million verdict on behalf of a client who was seriously injured in a railroad grade crossing accident.  Later that year the FELA Reporter  claimed that "Bob Pottroff [had] vaulted to the top of everyone's list as one of the nation's top ten plaintiff's railroad grade crossing lawyers." 

Major Verdicts

• On March 4, 1997, Robert Pottroff obtained a jury verdict in excess of $10,000,000.00 on behalf of a twenty-five year-old client who was injured in a railroad crossing accident. The jury found the railroad 99% at fault and the plaintiff 1%.
• Mr. Pottroff obtained a jury verdict of $2 million for a client who suffered brain damage in a railroad crossing accident in November 2001.  The jury found that the railroad company had allowed the vegetation around the track to become overgrown, which obstructed the driver’s view.
• In May of 2002, Mr. Pottroff obtained a jury verdict in excess of $30,000,000.00 for a passenger severely injured in a railroad crossing accident.  The verdict included $5.1 million in compensatory damages and $25 million in punitive damages.
• In October of 2002, Mr. Pottroff represented a tow truck driver who was injured by a moving train while towing another vehicle off the railroad tracks.  The jury awarded a verdict of $8 million in compensatory damages.

For more on our railroad accident decisions, please see our publications  page.

Changes in Law and Policy

Due to the outstanding work of Bob Pottroff and our lawyers and staff, the below decisions have made a difference for the future of personal injury litigation.

Nero v. Kansas State University , 253 Kan. 567, 861 P.2d 768 (1993); established the duty of a university to exercise reasonable care to protect the safety of students it houses.

Vetter v. Morgan , 22 Kan.App.2d 1, 913 P.2d 1200(1995): established the right of a brain injured person to recover damages from all parties jointly engaged in harassment and an assault that lead up to her injury.

Contact Us

If you have been injured or someone you know has been injured or killed in a railroad grade crossing accident or other accident, please contact our attorneys.  From law offices in Manhattan, Kansas, the law firm of Pottroff Law Office, P.A. serves clients in Topeka, Kansas City, Wichita, and across the nation.  We have also served as outside counsel for cases in Missouri, Arkansas, Kentucky, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Minnesota, West Virginia and other states.