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ATA: FAIR Act Would End ‘Forum Shopping’

[ September 19, 2025   //   ]

American Trucking Associations voiced its “strong support” for the Forum Accountability and Integrity in Roadway (FAIR) Trucking Act that would end the abusive practice of “forum shopping” by giving federal courts jurisdiction over consequential cases involving interstate trucking.

Forum shopping is a tactic commonly employed by trial lawyers to move cases to favorable state jurisdictions and engineer the award of nuclear verdicts against trucking companies that go far beyond actual harm.

“The skyrocketing number of nuclear verdicts is driving up insurance rates to unsustainable levels and raising the cost of goods for all consumers,” said Chris Spear, ATA president and CEO. “It also means trucking companies – the vast majority of which are small businesses – are one bad verdict away from being forced to permanently shut their doors. The FAIR Trucking Act would close the loopholes that the plaintiffs’ bar exploits to move cases to judicial hellholes and engineer these lopsided verdicts.”

The FAIR Trucking Act, introduced by Reps. Ashley Hinson (R-Iowa) and Tom Barrett (R-Michigan) and cosponsored by Rep. Brandon Gill (R-Texas), grants federal courts jurisdiction over truck crash cases when:

1. The matter involves interstate commerce.

2. The amount being sought exceeds US$5 million.

3. At least one defendant and one plaintiff are from different states.

Congress has acted before to stop abusive forum shopping, most notably with the bipartisan Class Action Fairness Act of 2005. Federal courts provide neutral forums with consistent standards, protections against manipulation and forum shopping, and fairer treatment for defendants.

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