Union Pacific Railroad will have to defend itself from a lawsuit by a former employee who says the company should have protected her better from getting West Nile virus.

The Nebraska Court of Appeals has revived the case involving the former employee, who contracted the illness while on the job.

In a ruling issued Tuesday, the appellate court said a Douglas County district judge was wrong to dismiss a complaint filed by Vivika Deviney. The court said the case should have been presented to a jury.

Deviney argues that Union Pacific is liable for her injuries after she was bitten by mosquitoes in 2003 and contracted West Nile virus. She says the railroad failed to control mosquitoes along one of its tracks in Wyoming.