Matthew McColgan and Francis Bovio Successfully Obtained the Dismissal of a National Transportation Client Following a Motion to Dismiss in the Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas

Highlighting a recent trend in federal courthouses that have applied the principle, Matthew and Francis argued that duplicative claims of an employer-defendant’s negligent entrustment, supervision, and training (“NEST claims”) should not stand for trial when the employer-defendant has admitted in responsive pleadings that the employee-defendant was acting within the course and scope of employment at the time of the alleged negligent conduct. The Court’s holding precludes an employer-defendant from appearing on a verdict sheet, leaving only the alleged negligence of the employee-defendant to be assessed by a fact finder.  This outcome continues the development of the defense in commercial vehicle accident cases in an effort to manage inflammatory jury verdicts and minimizing the company’s potential exposure to duplicate and redundant claims.