C.H. Robinson takes broker liability issue to Capitol Hill

Bozeman at C.H. Robinson's headquarters in 2025. (Leila Navidi/The Minnesota Star Tribune/TNS)

WASHINGTON — C.H. Robinson Worldwide is meeting with policymakers to address what it views as unclear broker liability standards that company leadership worries threaten transportation and commerce.

“America really runs on freight,” C.H. Robinson CEO Dave Bozeman told Transport Topics during a small media briefing that coincided with a recent Capitol Hill visit. “I’m ringing the bell that this is about commerce, and I’m actually concerned about the impact on commerce.”

Broker liability has recently garnered high-profile attention. The Supreme Court ruled May 14 in Montgomery v. Caribe Transport II that freight brokers are not shielded by federal law from state negligent-hiring lawsuits. Logistics leaders contend the decision weakens federal oversight and creates a patchwork of compliance requirements that could result in rising insurance and litigation costs for brokers.

Since the ruling, Eden Prairie, Minn.-based C.H. Robinson and industry partners have been pressing the issue in Washington. This effort has included meetings with lawmakers from both parties to highlight the ruling’s broader potential economic implications and advocate for legislative and regulatory solutions such as the Motor Carrier Safety Selection Standard Act, which would set a national standard of care for shippers and brokers that hire trucking companies.

“There are a number of voices — from asset carriers, to other brokers, to insurance providers,” Bozeman said. “They are all talking about this issue with lawmakers. We need to take that stick-building [approach], that one-by-one conversation, and we need to make that a modular approach. We need to bring that together to let Congress know this is a bigger issue.”

Bozeman emphasized that smaller operators are especially vulnerable to rising litigation costs. Company research determined that the number of small- to medium-size brokers declined about 20% over the past two years amid difficult market conditions. C.H. Robinson estimates another 20% of brokers could be affected if legal clarity is not established in the wake of the Montgomery decision.

“We were hoping that [the decision] would drive clarity,” Bozeman said. “What the Supreme Court really ruled in Montgomery certainly wasn’t in our favor … and that’s OK, except they also didn’t provide a standard or guidance.”

Bozeman said he is seeing signs that the ruling is already affecting brokers’ ability to obtain insurance.

“These costs — [the] rise of insurance costs, a number of other things — are transitory [and] that ultimately goes into the cost to consumers,” Bozeman said. “We are already sitting on an affordability issue, and so I’m up here ringing the bell to lawmakers to say, ‘This is not a C.H. Robinson issue, this is a commerce issue, and we have to act.’ ”

The debate comes as freight demand remains uneven. Bozeman noted that retail, manufacturing and housing traditionally drive freight activity. While he has seen strength in industrial technology projects such as data centers, those other core freight-generating sectors remain muted.

Bozeman stressed that these economic issues resonate across party lines because of the potential effects on jobs, businesses and consumer costs. He noted that support appears to be building in both parties.

“When you present data, when you present real issues, when you really start talking to lawmakers about what Main Street, what employees, what small businesses are feeling, they respect that,” Bozeman said. “I’m up here giving you a real problem with a real issue, and we pride ourselves in looking around corners, and our data has afforded us to do that.”

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration already evaluates whether motor carriers meet federal safety standards. Bozeman argued that the agency’s determination carried little weight in the Montgomery case and said he wants the agency to establish clearer safety-selection guidelines that lawmakers can then reinforce through legislation.

“We cannot move the commerce in this country at full scale without that model,” Bozeman said.

“We have to have a standard. That is not us saying we want immunity from liability. No, we want accountability. Give us a standard.”

C.H. Robinson ranks No. 2 on the TT Top 100 list of the largest logistics companies in North America.