Supreme Court To Navigate Preemption for Freight Broker Negligent Selection Claims

The Supreme Court has granted certiorari review in Montgomery v. Caribe Transport II, LLC, 124 F.4th 1053 (7th Cir.), cert. granted, No. 24-1238, (U.S. Oct. 3, 2025), to resolve a split among the circuits regarding whether a plaintiff’s common law negligence claim against a freight broker based on the alleged negligent selection of a motor carrier to provide transportation of cargo is preempted under the Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act (FAAAA), 49 U.S.C. § 14501(c). The Seventh Circuit held that the preemption provision in § 14501(c)(1) applied to the plaintiff’s claim against the broker defendant and that the safety exception, which provides that the FAAAA “shall not restrict the safety regulatory authority of a State with respect to motor vehicles,” § 14501(c)(2)(A), did not negate the preemption of a negligent selection claim against a freight broker. The following question is presented for review: “Does § 14501(c) preempt a state common-law claim against a broker for negligently selecting a motor carrier or driver?”

So far, the Supreme Court has not decided whether to grant certiorari in Total Quality Logistics, LLC v. Cox, 142 F.4th 847 (6th Cir.), petition for cert. filed, No. 25-145 (U.S. Sept. 29, 2025). In that case, the Sixth Circuit concluded that the claim against a freight broker for negligent selection was not preempted because it fell within the safety exception in § 14501(c)(2)(A).

The Eleventh Circuit agrees with the Seventh Circuit that negligent selection claims against freight brokers are preempted. See Aspen Am. Ins. v. Landstar Ranger, Inc., 65 F.4th 1261 (11th Cir. 2023). The Ninth Circuit agrees with the Sixth Circuit and held that a negligent selection claim against a freight broker is not preempted. See Miller v. C.H. Robinson Worldwide, Inc., 976 F.3d 1016 (9th Cir. 2020). Other courts, including the Fourth Circuit, currently are facing this issue. See Mays v. Polishchuk, No. 25-1629 (4th Cir.); Fuelling v. Echo Global Logistics, Inc., No. 25-1217 (4th Cir.) (scheduled for oral argument on October 24). In both cases pending in the Fourth Circuit, the district courts held that the FAAAA’s safety exception does not apply to negate the preemption afforded to claims against a freight broker for negligent selection.

Please contact the authors if you have any questions regarding this alert or any other trucking law issues.