The NAM filed an amicus brief urging the U.S. Supreme Court to grant cert to reverse a Ninth Circuit decision subjecting freight brokers to tort liability for their selection of carrier, despite the preemptive authority of federal trucking laws as applied to brokers. In this case, the plaintiff was injured in a traffic collision involving a trucking company. He alleged that the broker was negligent in selecting the trucking company because it knew or should have known about the company’s prior regulatory infractions. However, the Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act (“FAAAA”) regulates shipping by commercial trucks as well as the brokerage services necessary to facilitate that shipping. To that end, the FAAAA preempts certain state laws as they apply to brokers, including state common law claims for negligence, unless they implicate “the safety regulatory authority of the State with respect to motor vehicles.” 49 U.S.C. § 14501(c)(2)(A). The district court dismissed the case after finding the plaintiff’s claims preempted, but the Ninth Circuit reversed, significantly narrowing the federal preemption of state laws that regulate trucking.
The NAM filed an amicus brief in support of Supreme Court review explaining the careful balance that Congress struck in regulating drivers under the FAAAA, and why the plaintiffs’ theory of liability is unworkable in practice. By increasing liability risk in the form of inconsistent state common law tort claims against brokers, which they have almost no ability to manage or control for, the Ninth Circuit’s decision threatens a huge swath of the nation’s economy and offers little or no prospect of improved public safety. Unfortunately, on June 27, 2022, the Court denied cert.