A barrage of litigation could soon be hitting everyone from the US rail company to the Canadian government in the aftermath of the deadly Quebec train crash.XL Group, which has executive offices in Bermuda, has confirmed it was an insurer of train operator Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Railway.Dublin-based XL said its people were on the scene at Lac-Megantic working with the company and authorities.An XL spokeswoman declined to comment on the details of the policy, saying in an e-mail: "It is too soon to comment on the materiality of the losses.”According to reports yesterday, the key questions that will have to be answered in the coming weeks and months include whether any cases filed will be heard in Canada or the United States, which parties were most negligent and how liability for the crash is spread among them.Canadian authorities have launched an investigation and say they are looking into possible criminal negligence.Fifty people are feared to have been killed when an unmanned train hauling 72 tanker cars of crude oil slid downhill from the town of Nantes and derailed in the town of Lac-Megantic on Saturday. Police have confirmed 20 dead, with 30 others still missing and a criminal probe begun.It was the worst rail disaster in North America in more than two decades.Lawyers say possible targets of litigation include train operator Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Railway, or MMA, its parent company Rail World Inc, and the train's engineer; the town of Nantes; the supplier of the crude, World Fuel Services Corp; and the Canadian government, which regulates the rail system.But, Reuters reports, the first legal salvo will likely be fired over where the cases would be heard. While the catastrophe took place in Canada, the rail company is based in Maine, its parent is headquartered in Rosemont, Illinois, near Chicago, and the train was shipping crude from North Dakota. Reuters said the United States offers plaintiffs the prospect of larger recoveries than Canada, but they would need to prove a US venue would be the most convenient and appropriate.Lawyers said that could be tough when the damages to the rural Quebec town and its residents would likely be at the heart of any suit.“Once the venue for any lawsuit is settled, the challenge for any plaintiff will be to establish negligence,” Reuters said. “The question for a court could be whether MMA acted appropriately in leaving the train unattended overnight in Nantes with an engine running, and whether the engineer applied all the appropriate safety procedures.One focus, experts said, is likely to be on the handbrakes the engineer applied and whether they were sufficient to meet Canadian railroad regulations.