Armchair Industries

Freight Essentials v. GlobalTranz & Worldwide Express: A Damning Indictment of the Agency Model. This morning, Timothy Dooner keyed me into a lawsuit filed yesterday by Dylan Admire of Freight Essentials containing some pretty wild allegations. Disclaimer: This is just the Complaint & the Defendants have not filed their Answers yet. Everything in this Complaint will remain allegations unless & until we have a finding of fact by the fact-finder. In this case, a jury. Disclaimer over. Let's get into it. GlobalTranz is accused of misrepresenting transportation costs to business development companies (BDCs), which caused them to lose out on their portion of gross margin splits, the commission payments they were contractually entitled to. These costs included fuel surcharges, cargo insurance, & bad debt reserves. A little bit of extra "juice" for the bottom line. This discrepancy was allegedly brought up to the powers that be. Then things got wild. Freight Essentials' largest customers were allegedly poached by Worldwide Express through an extension of a credit of over $1.5 million to one client & credits of $100,000.00 to another. Then Worldwide Express allegedly pretended to have acquired Freight Essentials to further move customers away from the agency. Oh, did I mention that GlobalTranz allegedly had their IT people go in & change access to Freight Essentials' email account & change the 2 factor authentication? Wow. Just wow. Now look, this is just a Complaint. Nothing contained in it is true until proven true. But if you are contemplating agency, you should understand what is being alleged here. There is so much more to unpack. We are just at the beginning, we only have one side of the story. But rest assured, ol' Armchair Attorney® will be following case number 3:24-cv-03104-N closely. Very closely.

Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more!

Going live with Shannon Breen over at FreightVana at 15 minutes past the hour. Get ready!

On today's episode of WHAT THE TRUCK?!? Timothy Dooner is joined by Armchair Attorney Matthew Leffler to get a legal take on the controversial Werner accident ruling that could cost the company $100 million. What are the implications of the case, what does it mean for carrier liability, and did the courts make the right call? Watch the full episode here: https://lnkd.in/ejt4X5mR

Look for me at the intersection of law & supply chain. Join me live on FreightWaves with Timothy Dooner at 12:00EST as we discuss the most important liability case facing the trucking industry: Werner Enterprises v. Blake. Then at 2PM EST, my good friend, Brandon Wiseman, joins me over at The Armchair Attorney® Podcast to discuss clearinghouse updates, broker transparency updates, & speed regulations. No doubt we'll discuss some of the recent nuclear verdicts as well. Get ready! #law #supplychain

FreightVana to acquire Loadsmith. Wait, what?! Ok, Shannon, we have got to talk. How does Tuesday at 9:15 CST on the 10th look?

There are incredibly strong opinions on the Werner case that went before the Supreme Court of Texas for oral arguments yesterday. I've said it before, but this case is the most important liability case in the country. After watching the arguments myself, I have thoughts on where I think this case ultimately lands. Before that though, I had a lot of questions on the underlying facts. I wanted to share those facts with you. In total, there are 67 of them. It's a bit of a read & I had to spread them out over several images, but I'd love to know where you fall. As background, Trey Salinas was driving a vehicle with Jennifer Blake and her three children on eastbound Interstate 20 (“I-20”) near Odessa, Texas on December 30, 2014, during a National Weather Service Winter Storm Warning. Salinas lost control of the vehicle and it crossed the 42-foot-wide grassy median before colliding with an 18-wheeler traveling over 40 miles per hour. Ali was driving the 18-wheeler, which was owned by Werner Enterprises (the “Werner Truck”). As a result of the collision, seven-year-old Zachery Blake died, his 12-year-old sister, Brianna Blake, suffered a severe traumatic brain injury and was rendered a quadriplegic, and fourteen-year-old Nathan Blake suffered a broken shoulder blade, broken collar bone, bruised lung, and other injuries. Jennifer Blake suffered a mild traumatic brain injury, contusions, a hematoma, and other injuries. So, should Werner be released from liability? Should the verdict stand? What's your vote?

Today, we’ve got The Armchair Attorney Matt Leffler returning to the show to focus on broker transparency regulations and the latest on transportation industry rules! Matt discusses the ongoing debate about the benefits of transparency for carriers’ profitability, the importance of financial literacy, the risk of carriers operating below operational costs, reviewing broker-carrier agreements, and preparing for possible regulatory changes! To donate and contribute to Have a Heart’s purpose, visit https://lnkd.in/gr9sNwfy and go to their Facebook Page at https://lnkd.in/gkJxVG_2 to learn more about the upcoming events! Thank you to SPI Logistics for your support! Drop them a follow here on social media and check them out! Do me a favor and let them know that The Freight Coach sent you! Your honest rating and written reviews will significantly impact the show, so subscribe for more content like this!

What can Legos teach you about the federal law? For one, the law is a lot more interactive than you might guess. A bit of explanation. See, first, the government comes up with an idea for a rule. Then they write it down & share it with everyone, asking for opinions. People can say what they think or suggest changes. The government listens (hopefully) to these ideas, makes adjustments if needed, & then finalizes the rule. And goodness are there some interesting rules out there! Like Broker Transparency, which you can read & comment about here: https://lnkd.in/gVX9iE7N Some of the more controversial rules like speed regulations or autonomous trucks could soon be making their way to final rules as well. https://lnkd.in/gXK4cMJi We also have new FMCSA’s Drug & Alcohol Clearinghouse rules that took effect on Nov. 18, 2024. Well, if you're looking to better understand the changing regulatory landscape, then my next show with Brandon Wiseman is one you shouldn't miss. When is it? This Friday at 1PM CST. Links in the comments below.

Once again we welcome back friend of the show, Brandon Wiseman, transportation lawyer & regulatory guru to breakdown some of the most recent new & proposed rules by the FMCSA.