C.H. Robinson – and 3PL industry – win another broker liability case in 7th Circuit

The 3PL industry’s latest win in the legal battle over broker liability comes in a federal appellate court where a pro-broker precedent already exists.

Meanwhile, the latest attempt to have the U.S. Supreme Court rule on the issue may have been taken up by the court in a conference held Friday.

In the most recent case, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit, in a decision handed down Jan. 3, held that C.H. Robinson (NASDAQ: CHRW) did not have an “agency” relationship with carrier Caribe Transport, affirming a lower court ruling.

The issue arose in a lawsuit brought by truck driver Shawn Montgomery, whose vehicle was struck in 2017 by a Caribe truck while the latter was delivering plastic pots. The freight had been brokered by C.H. Robinson. In the original lawsuit filed in the case, his injuries were described as “severe, numerous and permanent.”

But the 7th Circuit is also the venue for the decision in the case involving Ying Ye, whose husband was killed in an accident with a truck hired by 3PL GlobalTranz. That case found that the Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act (F4A) protected GlobalTranz from liability. Ye’s attempt to have the Supreme Court review the case was rejected a year ago. 

According to the decision in the Caribe case – Caribe, not Robinson, is listed as the lead defendant – attorneys for Montgomery asked the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois to overturn the findings in Ye, which it declined to do.

The appellate court in its recent action affirmed that lower court decision, which had handed down its decision in early January 2024.

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