What Is a Freight Broker, and Why Does It Matter to Your Case?
Most loads are not arranged by the trucking company directly. A broker matches the shipper’s freight to a carrier, and is paid to choose a safe one. When the broker instead chooses the cheapest carrier on the board, ignoring a poor federal safety record, the broker helped put an unsafe truck on the road. Brokers are also frequently the better-insured, more solvent defendant, which is why identifying one early can change the value of the entire case.
The Law Changed: Montgomery v. Caribe Transport II
For years, brokers used a federal preemption argument under the FAAAA to get negligent-selection claims thrown out before a jury ever heard them. That argument is over. In May 2026, a unanimous U.S. Supreme Court held in Montgomery v. Caribe Transport II, LLC that negligent-selection claims against brokers are not preempted by federal law. The middleman now answers to the jury.
How We Prove a Broker Chose a Dangerous Carrier
We go straight to the documents: broker load logs, carrier-screening records, the FMCSA Safety Measurement System data the broker had access to, and the internal dispatch emails that show what it knew. The question for the jury is simple once the records are in hand. Did the broker hand this load to a carrier whose own safety record screamed danger?
Most cases settle, and the number they settle at depends on whether the other side believes your case is ready for a courtroom. Ours always are; our Truck Accidents page shows exactly how we prepare one.
Go Deeper
The hub. Every company in the chain, and how we prepare these cases for court.
Truck AccidentsThe head-on look at semi-truck crash cases.
18-Wheeler AccidentsThe data that decides truck cases, and how fast it disappears.
Electronic Evidence
