TLA — Eric R. Benton

TLA Editor’s Column

We did it! Thanks to the strong leadership of President John Wilcox and conference Co-Chairs Jeff Pincus and Bridgette This year the Executive Committee meeting was held in Milwaukee. I had never been to Milwaukee but came away quite impressed. Blitch, the Annual Conference was held live and was a great success. Blazing a trail back to normalcy, the membership reopened the beautiful surroundings of Lake Tahoe as tourists and conference attendees alike. Restaurants may not have yet opened; shuttle buses were sporadic and rental cars scarce, but none of that stopped a great time with a very big dose of education. The one trait that transportation attorneys have, in addition to learning, improving, and passing down the knowledge of a unique but historical area of the law, is we are usually very skilled in the ability to navigate the airports and highways of the world. This trait was called upon by all as we traveled to beautiful Lake Tahoe and Squaw Creek in Olympic Valley.

A return to pre-pandemic normalcy appeared to have finally arrived; however, many of us in the South and Gulf Coast are once again caught in the riptide of another COVID-19 wave. If you have not read the collection of articles in the July issue, it is not too late. I was concerned that the timing between writing the articles, getting them published and then into the hands of the members Eric R. Benton would result in the articles being stale. That worry did not come to pass as the Delta variant of COVID-19 has the world reexamining vaccination policies. These articles address whether employers can force their employees to get vaccinated.

In this issue of The Transportation Lawyer, we have the always popular photographs from the Annual Conference. I also have included some photographs from the summer Executive Committee meeting held each year to review the budget and association issues. In addition to the photographic memories from this summer’s meetings, this issue contains some very timely articles for those of us in the trenches fighting the good fight for our clients every day. Tammy Meyer looks at what happened when COVID-19 changed traffic patterns and usage of the roads and highways. Art Spratlin’s article on autonomous vehicles provides an update on where and when artificial intelligence will be taking on the responsibilities of our drivers. Steven Belgrade and Adam McCabe revisit the Carmack Amendment. Greg Summy follows up on Jameson Rice’s presentation at the Annual Conference on consolidation of the railroads. Chris Cotter looks at the medical emergency defense and whether the driver’s medical certificate is sufficient to relieve the driver or the employee when an accident results from a driver’s medical condition. Campbell Roper looks at investigating fraudulent truck accidents and ways to combat those that stage accidents with the hope of getting a large settlement. Chris Whitten looks at a recent case in Indiana that addressed whether the motor carrier’s MCS-90 endorsement is available for intrastate moves. Finally, on a lighter note, Kathleen Jeffries reviews the history behind the prestigious Bull Shipper’s Award. I would like to thank all of the authors for their hard work in putting these articles together. If you get a chance, please let them know that you have read their articles. Please consider writing an article yourself for a future edition. Not only does it look good on your curriculum vitae, you might just learn something too.

TTL Call for Articles

We are looking for more featured articles and/or case notes for upcoming issues. This is an opportunity for TLA and CTLA members to write on timely issues which will allow greater exposure among our memberships. This will give you nationwide recognition and is a great way to expand your networking abilities as part of a well-respected and widely read industry publication. The submission deadline for the next publication is November 16, 2021. Please direct any questions and submissions to TTL Editor Eric R. Benton at erb@lorancethompson.com.