MATT STROUD
Associated Press

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) — A federal appeals court is set to hear arguments about whether lawyers committed racketeering crimes when they sued CSX on behalf of its employees.

Between 2000 and 2008, three Pittsburgh lawyers filed claims on behalf of thousands of CSX workers alleging they breathed harmful asbestos on the job.

The Jacksonville, Florida-based CSX filed a counter claim in West Virginia federal court in 2005. The company argued nine of the lawyers’ West Virginia lawsuits were fraudulent. The company said the lawyers committed racketeering crimes when they colluded with a radiologist to inundate CSX with lawsuits.

In 2013, a Wheeling district judge sided with CSX. The company was awarded $1.3 million.

The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals will hear arguments Tuesday over whether the Wheeling court made the right decision.

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