West Virginia Federal Court Dismisses Declaratory Action Filed by CSX in Asbestos-Related Dispute

WHEELING, W.Va. –– A West Virginia federal court has dismissed a declaratory action filed by CSX Transportation Inc., ruling that it did not have subject matter jurisdiction over the dispute over whether an asbestos plaintiff had released the company from future liability involving asbestos-related injuries.

In the Dec. 29 opinion, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia held that issuing a ruling on CSX’s request would be “duplicative and unnecessary,” since the state court is “clearly capable of conducting and resolving the action before it.”

CSX Transportation filed the complaint for declaratory relief, contending that …