Texas Supreme Court to Determine if a Shipper Owes a Duty to a Third-Party Motorist Injured by a Freight Carrier

This case arises from an accident in which a driver hired by a freight carrier ran a red light and fatally struck a motorcyclist. The decedent’s parents sued both the freight carrier and the shipper, Home Depot, alleging negligence, negligence per se, and gross negligence. The carrier accepted vicarious liability given the driver was acting within the scope of his employment. Home Depot moved to dismiss the plaintiffs’ claims as baseless, given they did not owe a duty to a third-party motorist for the actions of a freight carrier’s drivers. The Texas trial court denied the motion, and the court of appeals denied Home Depot’s mandamus petition.

However, the Texas Supreme Court granted Home Depot’s petition for a writ of mandamus. Home Depot again argued that it did not have a duty to a third-party motorist in the event of negligent actions by the freight carrier’s driver. Home Depot further argued that Texas does not recognize negligent hiring as a valid cause of action for an independent contractor, claiming the plaintiffs failed to adequately allege that Home Depot’s hiring of the freight carrier proximately caused the accident. Home Depot argued that the court should adopt and apply a rule that would absolve an employer of liability for a derivative claim if the employer accepts vicarious liability.

The Texas Supreme Court held oral arguments on March 4, 2026, and has yet to issue a decision.