The safety of America’s roadways has raised concerns in recent years, including reports of fatal accidents involving foreign truck drivers, in the wake of years of lax regulation of illegal immigrants receiving commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs) under the Biden administration. While not every incident has led to deaths, some victims and their families have taken to court the brokers who pay trucking companies to haul their freight.
A ruling issued by the Supreme Court on Thursday might lead to stricter standards within the industry:
In Montgomery v. Caribe Transport II LLC, the Court ruled that freight brokers could be held liable:
Here’s what we know about the Court’s decision:
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled unanimously Thursday that freight brokers accused of hiring unsafe trucking companies can be sued after deadly crashes, a decision that could reshape accountability across the trucking industry.
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In Montgomery v. Caribe Transport II, LLC, the Supreme Court ruled that federal law does not block state lawsuits against freight brokers that arrange shipments with trucking companies involved in crashes.
At issue was the Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act, or FAAAA, a federal deregulation law that the trucking industry has long argued protects brokers from liability in state courts.
Justice Amy Coney Barrett, writing for a unanimous court, said states still have the authority to regulate safety involving motor vehicles.
“A claim that one company negligently hired another to transport goods is not preempted by the FAAAA because States retain authority to regulate safety ‘with respect to motor vehicles’ under the Act,” Barrett wrote.