The Supreme Court ruled unanimously on May 14 that the Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act does not preempt state-law negligent-hiring claims…
The Supreme Court ruled unanimously on May 14 that the Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act does not preempt state-law negligent-hiring claims against freight brokers, ending a defense the industry has used for decades to defeat tort suits arising from carrier-caused crashes [1]. The 9-0 decision in *Montgomery v. Caribe Transport II, LLC* was authored by Justice Amy Coney Barrett and resolves a long-standing circuit split on whether the FAAAA's safety exception preserves those claims [1]. Justice Brett Kavanaugh filed a separate concurrence, stressing highway safety concerns as a basis for the Court's reading of the statute [2].
The case arose from a crash involving Caribe Transport II, a carrier that plaintiff Shawn Montgomery alleged was negligently selected by the arranging freight broker [1]. Freight brokers, including major intermediaries such as C.H. Robinson Worldwide, had argued that the FAAAA, which generally preempts state laws "related to a price, route, or service" of a broker, barred negligent-hiring suits at the threshold [2]. Courts across the circuits had divided on whether the statute's carve-out for laws "with respect to motor vehicle safety" covered common-law tort claims, producing inconsistent outcomes for injured plaintiffs and broker defendants alike [3].
The Court's ruling forecloses the preemption defense in all 50 states and subjects freight brokers to liability whenever a plaintiff can show the broker hired a carrier with known safety deficiencies that caused injury [3]. The practical effect is significant: brokers routinely rely on digital load boards and automated vetting systems, and the decision puts those processes under scrutiny in litigation. Plaintiff-side attorneys can now pursue brokers as deep-pocket defendants alongside carriers in crash cases, while brokers face pressure to document their carrier-selection procedures with greater rigor [2].
The decision does not resolve what standard of care governs negligent-hiring claims or how damages are apportioned among brokers, carriers, and shippers, questions that will now be worked out in trial courts applying varying state tort frameworks [3]. C.H. Robinson and other large brokers are expected to revise compliance protocols, and industry groups had signaled before the ruling that an adverse outcome would prompt lobbying for a legislative fix through Congress [2]. Defense counsel for broker defendants will need to pivot from preemption arguments to substantive negligence defenses, including contributory fault and foreseeability, as the litigation terrain shifts sharply toward the merits.
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**Meta Description:** The Supreme Court's unanimous ruling in *Montgomery v. Caribe Transport II* ends federal preemption as a defense for freight brokers facing state negligent-hiring claims after carrier crashes.
**Slug:** scotus-freight-broker-preemption-montgomery-caribe
**Tags:** Legal News, Court Records Disclosed, Montgomery v. Caribe Transport II LLC, United States, Washington DC, Transportation Law, Federal Preemption, Tort Liability, Supreme Court of the United States, C.H. Robinson Worldwide, Amy Coney Barrett, Brett Kavanaugh
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**Metadata:**
– subject: Montgomery v. Caribe Transport II, LLC, FAAAA freight broker liability
– subject_type: Court Records Disclosed
– date: 2026-05-14
– jurisdiction: federal
– country: United States
– region: N/A
– city: Washington
– key_people: Amy Coney Barrett, Brett Kavanaugh, Shawn Montgomery
– key_organizations: Supreme Court of the United States, C.H. Robinson Worldwide, Caribe Transport II
– themes: Transportation Law, Federal Preemption, Tort Liability
– significance: Eliminates freight brokers' primary federal preemption defense in all 50 states, dramatically expanding their exposure to state negligent-hiring suits and reshaping carrier-vetting obligations industry-wide.
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**References:**
[1] Legal Information Institute / Supreme Court. (2026, May 14). *Montgomery v. Caribe Transport II, LLC, No. 24-1238*. https://www.law.cornell.edu/supremecourt/text/24-1238
[2] FreightWaves. (2026, May 14). *The Supreme Court just told every freight broker that they can be sued*. https://www.freightwaves.com/news/the-supreme-court-just-told-every-freight-broker-that-they-can-be-sued
[3] Matthiesen, Wickert & Lehrer. (2026, May 14). *Broker liability after Montgomery: Supreme Court says freight brokers can now be sued*. https://www.mwl-law.com/scotus-broker-liability/