Earlier broker liability victory for Echo sent back to lower court after Montgomery

Key Points:

• In November 2024, the federal district court for South Carolina granted summary judgment to Echo Global, removing it as a defendant in Angela Fuelling’s lawsuit, citing the Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act (F4A) which bars state action affecting transportation pricing, routes, or services.
• The Fuelling case was appealed to the Fourth Circuit, which remanded it back to the district court following the unanimous Montgomery decision that clarified the F4A’s safety exception includes brokers, allowing them to be held liable for negligent hiring.
• The Montgomery ruling resolves previous circuit court splits on whether brokers fall under the F4A safety exception, establishing that brokers can be sued for safety-related negligence in hiring carriers.
• Post-Montgomery, plaintiff attorneys are preparing for increased litigation against brokers, with firms like Searcy Denney Scarola Barnhart & Shipley advising that catastrophic trucking cases now require screening for broker involvement and outlining a duty of reasonable care brokers must meet.
• The law firm suggests reasonable care includes reviewing FMCSA safety ratings, investigating carriers with poor safety records, and avoiding hiring carriers with documented violations, highlighting that broker negligent-hiring cases will involve complex, high-stakes litigation against well-resourced corporate defendants.