The Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) issued a notice of proposed rulemaking on Feb. 14, 2020, proposing to change the publication requirements related to ocean service contracts. Currently, VOCCs must file with the FMC each...more
As an update to our Jan. 7, 2020, post regarding California Assembly Bill 5 (AB-5), on Jan. 13, 2020, U.S. District Judge Roger T. Benitez of the Southern District of California heard two hours of oral argument on the motion...more
California Assembly Bill 5 (AB-5), a law aimed at classifying most workers as employees rather than independent contractors, went into effect Jan. 1, 2020. However, the day before the law took effect, U.S. District Judge...more
1/8/2020
/ ABC Test ,
Commercial Truck Drivers ,
Employee Definition ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act of 1994 (FAAAA) ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Labor Code ,
Labor Regulations ,
Preemption ,
State Labor Laws ,
Trucking Industry
The Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) voted in a closed session on Sept. 26, 2019, to eliminate the requirement for vessel operators to publish essential terms of their service contracts. The decision is a response to a...more
10/1/2019
/ Contract Terms ,
Federal Maritime Commission ,
Filing Requirements ,
Maritime Transport ,
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) ,
Proposed Rules ,
Service Agreements ,
Service Contracts ,
Shipping ,
Transportation Industry ,
Vessels
The Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) in March 2018 directed Commissioner Rebecca F. Dye to initiate a fact finding investigation (Fact Finding 28) into demurrage and detention practices at U.S. ports. Commissioner Dye issued...more
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has announced a notice of proposed rulemaking, which if made final would allow drivers a bit more flexibility in complying with hours of service requirements. This...more
Many companies are exploring the use of blockchain in their supply chain to make sure they are well positioned from a business perspective when blockchain use becomes ubiquitous. But another important consideration in...more
In a prior article following the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in New Prime Inc. v. Oliveira, we noted that there is likely to be future litigation concerning who qualifies as an "interstate" transportation worker for...more
4/1/2019
/ Appeals ,
Arbitration ,
Delivery Drivers ,
Dismissals ,
Employment Contract ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
GrubHub ,
Independent Contractors ,
Interstate Commerce ,
Misclassification ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Transportation Industry
• The U.S. Supreme Court's decision in New Prime Inc. v. Oliveira substantially impacts the arbitrability of independent contractor misclassification cases in the transportation industry.
• The Court held that a court –...more
1/18/2019
/ Appeals ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Commercial Truck Drivers ,
Employment Contract ,
Exceptions ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Independent Contractors ,
Motion to Compel ,
New Prime v Oliveira ,
Question of Arbitrability ,
Reaffirmation ,
SCOTUS
On Jan. 15, 2019, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its opinion in New Prime Inc. v. Oliveira, No. 17-340, holding (1) that a court (rather than an arbitrator) should resolve a dispute over the applicability of the Federal...more
1/16/2019
/ Appeals ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Commercial Truck Drivers ,
Employment Contract ,
Exceptions ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Independent Contractors ,
Motion to Compel ,
New Prime v Oliveira ,
Question of Arbitrability ,
Reaffirmation ,
SCOTUS
On Oct. 3, 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral argument in the case of New Prime Inc. v. Oliveira, No. 17-340. This case addresses (1) whether an arbitrator or the court should resolve a dispute over the applicability of...more
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) granted tank truck drivers an exemption from the 30-minute break requirement in the hours of service regulations, which became effective April 9, 2018. 83 FR 15221 (Apr....more
In the wake of a hearing held by the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) in January regarding detention, demurrage, and per diem charges, the FMC voted on Monday, March 5, to launch an investigation focusing on the practices of...more
On Feb. 26, 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court granted certiorari in New Prime Inc. v. Oliveira, which should provide guidance as to the circumstances in which the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) applies to interstate transportation...more
3/2/2018
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Certiorari ,
Class Action ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Commercial Truck Drivers ,
Discovery ,
Employee Training ,
Employment Contract ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ,
Independent Contractors ,
Misclassification ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Split of Authority ,
Transportation Contracts ,
Transportation Industry ,
Wage and Hour
In January 2017, Holland & Knight Transportation & Infrastructure lawyers and senior advisors prepared 20 posts for the 20 days leading to President Donald Trump's inauguration regarding what to expect from the Trump...more
2/5/2018
/ Aviation Industry ,
Browning-Ferris Industries of California Inc. ,
Coal Industry ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Department of Transportation (DOT) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
FMCSA ,
Independent Contractors ,
Infrastructure ,
Joint Employers ,
Logging ,
Mexico ,
Mining ,
Motor Carriers ,
NAFTA ,
NHTSA ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Proposed Rules ,
Public Private Partnerships (P3s) ,
Railroads ,
TIFIA ,
Transportation Industry ,
Trucking Industry ,
Trump Administration ,
Wage and Hour ,
WIFIA
Safety-sensitive transportation workers in the aviation, trucking, rail, transit and pipeline industries, as well as certain U.S. Coast Guard employees, are required to submit to random drug testing under federal law....more
In a decision that had become all but inevitable, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), on December 4, 2017 rescinded its rule that would have required railroads carrying highly hazardous flammable materials, such as...more
12/8/2017
/ Crude by Rail ,
Crude Oil ,
Department of Transportation (DOT) ,
Federal Railroad Administration ,
Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (FAST Act) ,
GAO ,
Hazardous Waste ,
National Academy of Sciences (NAS) ,
PHMSA ,
Railroads ,
Repeal ,
Safety Equipment ,
Technology Sector
Many states and municipalities have (or used to have) laws that limit the amount of time a railroad may block a traffic intersection. Time and again, courts have determined that these laws are preempted by either the...more
Los principales grupos de la industria de transportes de carga están presionando al Representante de Comercio de los Estados Unidos respecto del programa existente que permite que los camiones de carga mexicanos operen en...more
10/27/2017
/ Commercial Truck Drivers ,
Cross-Border Transactions ,
Federal Pilot Programs ,
FMSCA ,
Foreign Trade Regulations ,
Mexico ,
NAFTA ,
Shipping Cargo ,
Trade Retaliation ,
Trucking Industry ,
Trucking Regulations
Major industry groups are lobbying the U.S. Trade Representative with respect to existing program that allows Mexican trucks to operate in the U.S under NAFTA. It is unclear what the cost to the U.S. would be if it were to...more
10/27/2017
/ Commercial Truck Drivers ,
Cross-Border Transactions ,
Federal Pilot Programs ,
FMCSA ,
Foreign Trade Regulations ,
Mexico ,
NAFTA ,
Shipping Cargo ,
Trade Retaliation ,
Trucking Industry ,
Trucking Regulations
Trucking companies will receive a small reprieve when it comes to implementation of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration's (FMCSA) electronic logging device (ELD) rule that takes effect on Dec. 18, 2017. The rule,...more
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) may overhaul how it evaluates the safety of the carriers it regulates following the release of a new study by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and...more
7/6/2017
/ Common Carriers ,
Department of Transportation (DOT) ,
Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (FAST Act) ,
FMCSA ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Information Reports ,
Motor Carriers ,
National Academy of Sciences (NAS) ,
Obama Administration ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Public Safety ,
Safety Data Sheets ,
Trump Administration
In an earlier article (see Holland & Knight's alert, "Is There an Opening to Withdraw or Modify Electronic Logging Device Rule?," Jan. 13, 2017), we described the controversial final Electronic Logging Device (ELD) rule,...more
In January 2017, Holland & Knight Transportation & Infrastructure lawyers and senior advisors prepared 20 posts for the 20 days leading to President Donald Trump's inauguration regarding what to expect from the Trump...more
5/2/2017
/ Antitrust Investigations ,
Coal ,
Commercial Truck Drivers ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act of 1994 (FAAAA) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (FAST Act) ,
FMCSA ,
Independent Contractors ,
Infrastructure ,
Maritime Transport ,
Mexico ,
Motor Carriers ,
NAFTA ,
NHTSA ,
Railroads ,
Safety Standards ,
Transportation Industry ,
Trump Administration
Most U.S. railroad industry stock rose in the immediate aftermath of Donald Trump's election as president. Optimism surrounding railroad stock may be driven in part by the prospect of a resurgence of the coal industry, since...more