On July 19, 2024, in Lopez v. Aircraft Service International, Inc., Case No. 23-55015 (9th Cir. July 19, 2024), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit held that the Federal Arbitration Act’s (FAA) transportation worker exemption applies to an airplane fueling technician. Even though the technician had no hands-on contacts with goods, the
Transportation, Automotive and Logitistics
Blog Authors
Latest from Transportation, Automotive and Logitistics
NHTSA and FMCSA Further Delay Potential Regulations for Automatic Emergency Braking Technologies
By Duane Morris
By Jim Steigerwald, Harry Byrne, and Ryan Monahan
The potential for rulemaking in 2024 from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has been deferred to 2025 at the earliest, including on key state-of-the-art technologies such as automatic emergency braking (AEB) in heavy and medium-duty…
EPA Proposes Two Rules That Could Dramatically Increase EV Sales
By Duane Morris
On April 12, 2023, the EPA announced two proposed vehicle emission rules aimed to accelerate the transition to electric passenger and commercial vehicles.
The proposed standards do not require that manufacturers produce a certain number of electric vehicles, but instead set forth limits on greenhouse gas emissions that manufacturers must comply with for particular vehicle fleets.…
Treasury Department Releases Proposed Guidance on New Clean Vehicle Provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act
By Duane Morris
By Elisa Walker
On March 31, 2023, the Treasury Department and the IRS released a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on the new clean vehicle provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act. The Notice will be published in the Federal Register on April 17, 2023. Comments and requests for a public hearing must be submitted by June…
D.C. Circuit Upholds Drone Remote ID Rule, Dismissing Constitutional and Procedural Challenges
On July 29, 2022, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit issued its opinion in RaceDayQuads, LLC v. Dickson, upholding the Federal Aviation Administration’s Remote ID Rule for drones.
The FAA had initially promulgated the Remote ID Rule as part of a package of sweeping updates to existing drone regulations…
Insuring Commercial Drones: Liability or Opportunity?
By Duane Morris
Developments in drone technology are often heralded as having the potential to change the landscape of business operations, most prominently in the consumer goods shipping sector. Yet, the development of federal regulation and guidance on the commercial use of drones lags behind the pace of innovation. Meanwhile, litigation highlighting the common law tort risks inherent…
Suez Canal Reopens, but Delay Damages Still an Obstacle
By Duane Morris
Shippers whose cargoes have been delayed by the grounding of the container ship Ever Given will likely face obstacles in recovering damages caused by the delay. The Ever Given, which is one of the world’s largest container ships at over 400 meters in length, ran aground on March 23, 2021, while transiting northbound in the Suez Canal, completely…
Walter Rand Transportation Center in New Jersey Receives $250M Redevelopment Funding
By Duane Morris
On February 17th, New Jersey Governor Murphy, Congressman Norcross, Senate President Sweeney and local and county officials announced $250 Million for the redevelopment of the Walter Rand Transportation Center (WRTC) in Camden, NJ. This will be the center’s first major renovation since opening in 1989.
To read the full text of this post by Duane Morris…
Under the Biden Administration, the Jones Act Is Here to Stay
By Duane Morris
On January 25, 2021, President Joe Biden signed a critical executive order reaffirming his administration’s support for the U.S. maritime protectionary statute known as the Jones Act.
To read the full text of this Duane Morris Alert, please visit the firm website.
Auto Industry Implications for 3D Printing
By Duane Morris
For as long as cars have existed, three fundamental truths appeared to be eternal. First, every car contains safety critical components, second these components are mostly metal and third, they are manufactured by one of two methods—stamping or cold forming. These eternal truths always led to an equally durable legal reality, that if the safety…