In this issue:

- Don’t Sail Too Close to the Wind: Enhancing Awareness of Intermodal Shipping Documents

- NEMF Class Action Settlement Serves as a Reminder to Carriers to Ensure FCRA Compliance in Hiring

- Protect Your Brand! Apply for a Trademark

- An Ounce of Prevention: Employ an Effective Antitrust Compliance Policy to Safeguard Your Company’s Precious Resources

- Excerpt from Don’t Sail Too Close to the Wind:

In the wake of the surge in intermodal freight transportation, and the transportation industry’s heightened reliance on subcontractors and intermediaries, pinpointing the responsible party when goods are lost, damaged or delayed has become convoluted. Multiple shipping documents often govern a particular shipment. Claims are brought by third parties, not even referenced in the bills of lading, against carriers, and carriers are asserting defenses contained in service contracts against nonparties. As illustrated in two recent court cases, it is imperative that intermodal freight transportation companies familiarize themselves with all of the shipping documents governing a particular shipment, and evaluate how the terms within those documents might affect their liability in the event of a cargo calamity.