Stephen S. Laudone

Stephen’s recent experience includes representing:

• FTAI Infrastructure, Inc. in its US$1.05 billion strategic acquisition of Wheeling Corporation and its railroad subsidiaries, Wheeling & Lake Erie Railway Company andAkron Barberton Cluster Railway Company.
• A coalition of three railroads in Grand Trunk Corporation v. Surface Transportation Board, successfully challenging a final rule before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit; on July 8, 2025, the court vacated the rule, holding that the STB had exceeded its statutory authority by permitting forced reciprocal switching orders without a threshold finding of inadequate service.
• CSX Transportation, Inc. in an unprecedented 11-day regulatory hearing before the STB concerning Amtrak’s proposed introduction of passenger service between New Orleans and Mobile; resulted in a successful settlement that resolved a two-decades-long controversy over passenger service on the Gulf Coast and dismissal of the case in November 2024.
• Norfolk Southern Railway and the Association of American Railroads in a successful constitutional challenge to a Virginia statute permitting broadband companies to cross active rail lines without satisfying safety or economic requirements; orchestrated a multi-pronged litigation strategy across federal and state forums, culminating in a landmark May 2025 Virginia Supreme Court decision striking down the statute as unconstitutional for authorizing private condemnation of railroad property without a public use justification.
• Canadian National Railway in its acquisition of the Iowa Northern Railway and application for regulatory approval from the STB. The STB approved the transaction in a decision served January 14, 2025. Iowa Northern operates approximately 218 route miles in Iowa, which will be added to CN’s nearly 20,000-mile network in the United States and Canada.
• A railroad in Sixth Circuit appeal to vindicate the ICC Termination Act’s preemption of state-law property claims aimed at a railroad right-of-way.
• Fortress Transportation and Infrastructure Investors, LLC in their US$640 million acquisition of Transtar, LLC from United States Steel Corporation.
• Short line operator Pinsly Railroad Co. in its proposed acquisition of Hondo Railway, LLC, a short line railroad company in Hondo, Texas.
• Railroads in STB proceedings and state and federal court litigation involving preemption defenses under the ICC Termination Act and the Federal Rail Safety Act.
• Railroads on passenger rail issues, including preference, on-time performance, and contractual matters.