08/02/05 8th Circ throws out suit for Scottsbluff benzene spill from derailment Hill v. Burlington Northern 8th Circuit case No. 04-2053 and No. 05-1187 District of Nebraska Multiple Plaintiff suit against railroad for spilled benzene in Scottsbluff Neb from train derailment in Nov. 2000. Plaintiffs alleged negligent car inspection and other tort theories. 8th Circs hold: Federal Railroad Administration's regulations (Federal Railroad Safety Act (FRSA), 49 U.S.C. § 20101 et seq) preempt (49 U.S.C. § 20106 (2005)) Plaintiffs' claims that defendant negligently inspected rail cars; Cf. CSX Trans., Inc. v. Williams, 406 F.3d 667, 672 (D.C. Cir. 2005) District Court correctly found Nebraska tort law applied to to Plaintiffs' causes of action; Modern Computer Sys., Inc. v. Modern Banking Sys., Inc., 858 F.2d 1339, 1342 (8th Cir. 1988){dist court must apply forum states conflict rules} ; Malena v. Marriott Int’l, Inc., 651 N.W.2d 850, 853 (Neb. 2002){Nebraska follows REstatement rules}. Dist court correctly dismissed claims for strict liability and negligence per se because Nebraska state law does not recognize violations of a regulation or statute as negligence per se;Malena v. Marriott Int’l, Inc., 651 N.W.2d 850, 853 (Neb. 2002). Nebraska Surpeme court has not adopted strict liability for ultrahazardous or abnormally dangerous ctivites and would not do so on this set of facts. Bargmann v. Soll Oil Co., 574 N.W.2d 478, 486 (Neb. 1998) {insufficient claim that merely mvoving benzene on railcar is ultrahazardous}