Transportation

Experience

Our Transportation Practice Group, under the guidance of Matthew W. Daus - Founder and Chair, is dedicated to serving ground transportation and related businesses. We counsel companies of all sizes on a broad range of transportation matters, including regulatory compliance, strategic planning, administrative law, and public policy throughout the United States and internationally.

We also work with government regulators - both domestic and foreign - that seek our assistance in improving their transportation services or re-engineering their systems and infrastructure.

Our attorneys combine regulatory knowledge, a multidisciplinary approach, and a solid grasp of the transportation industry's unique operations and issues to solve complex legal problems and help clients achieve their business goals. At the same time, we never lose sight of the need to promote public safety and enhance customer service.

Our services include:

• helping clients comply with the complex legal and regulatory framework overseen by national, state, and local taxi and limousine regulators; transportation and motor vehicle departments; and other government agencies;
• assisting clients in obtaining required government approvals for products, services, and procurements;
• representing clients in disputes with regulators and private entities;
• helping clients obtain and maintain operating licenses;
• drafting driver affiliation and base affiliation agreements;
• negotiating and drafting transportation business purchase and sales agreements;
• counseling clients on corporate organization and formation;
• advising clients on worker classification (such as classifying drivers as independent contractors) and related issues, including the structuring of agreements, policies, and codes of conduct;
• advising clients on avoiding tort liability, minimizing sales tax and related liabilities, and insurance coverage review; and
• providing strategic legal, financing, and market advice to transportation businesses.

Our overarching objective is to ensure that our clients operate safely, legally, and effectively. We also encourage clients to promote and advance sustainable transportation improvements and initiatives that meet economic, environmental, and accessibility goals. These include maximizing the efficiency of overall resource utilization and minimizing the consumption of nonrenewable resources.

In addition to transportation companies and trade organizations, we represent a wide range of related businesses, including credit and debit card transaction providers, advertising and media content providers, financial institutions that specialize in medallion and ground transportation business lending, manufacturers and distributors of environmental products and alternative fuels, automobile manufacturers and inspection companies, and in-vehicle security camera manufacturers and distributors.

Representative Matters

Among our many notable engagements, we have represented:

• the largest ground transportation company in the world - providing motor coach, van, and shuttle services to and from New York City (NYC) airports - successfully defending it in complex litigation against a losing government franchise bidder, which involved federal, state, and local interstate and intrastate motor carrier laws and regulations;
• one of the largest U.S. financial institutions, in connection with medallion financing in various cities;
• international and domestic credit and debit card processing and technology companies, on the use of global positioning systems (GPS) and transaction processing equipment installation in taxi and other ground transportation vehicles in US cities and airports around the world;
• one of the country's oldest and largest automobile manufacturers, on ground transportation vehicle and environmental regulations in U.S. cities;
• a multinational company that conducts automobile safety and emissions inspections and provides technology solutions to both private and public entities, in connection with a government privatization initiative in New Jersey and on related government procurement matters;
• an international motor coach company, in connection with a bus franchise and concession bid and agreement with the NYC Department of Transportation (DOT);
• a toy distributor, in connection with trademark logo licensing rights and other issues in connection with toy taxis and NYC Police, Fire and Sanitation Department vehicles;
• a distributor of biodegradable motor oil, in connection with the NYC Taxi & Limousine Commission (TLC) approval process;
• a software technology company that provides smart phone applications for hailing taxis and other for-hire vehicles, in connection with various licensing and approval issues;
• elected officials as litigation counsel and in settlement negotiations with the NY Metropolitan Transportation Authority and NYC Transit Authority concerning civil rights claims arising from budget-related reductions in NYC mass transit bus service; and
• domestic and international ground transportation industry trade organizations and foreign governments, on policy issues involving rate increases, medallion permit systems, regulatory structure and reform, credit card acceptance, tax, and related issues.

Attorneys in the Transportation Practice Group work closely with colleagues in the Firm's other Practice Groups, including Employment and Employee Benefits; Corporate & Securities; Environmental Law; Financial Transactions; Governmental Relations; Insurance; Intellectual Property, Technology & E-Commerce; Litigation & Alternative Dispute Resolution; and Tax, providing clients with comprehensive representation.