The Supreme Court ruled on Thursday that the federal law does not shield transportation brokers from state negligence lawsuits over hiring unsafe trucking companies. The court held that “A claim that one company negligently hired another to transport goods is not preempted by the [Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act] because States retain authority to regulate safety ‘with respect to motor vehicles’ under the Act.”

The case was brought forth by Shawn Montgomery, who sustained “serious and permanent injuries” after his tractor-trailer was hit by a truck driven by respondent Yosniel Varela-Mojena in Illinois. Varela-Mojena had been hired by the motor carrier Caribe Transport II, LLC, and the broker C.H. Robinson Worldwide, Inc had coordinated the shipment. 

Montgomery sued the companies, alleging that C.H. Robinson was liable for his injuries “because it negligently hired Varela-Mojena and Caribe Transport. Montgomery claimed that C.H. Robinson knew (or should have known) from Caribe Transport’s safety rating that hiring it to transport goods was reasonably likely to result in crashes that would injure others.”

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