Page 13 - ATR 2 2015 web
P. 13

NEwS IN brIEf



















        hoTfooT geTs Ruling To             are familiar with this issue. Turning   fees. The most important thing is the
        help aRkansas TRuCking             down business isn’t an option, but if   ruling. We’re not a big carrier that can
        CoMpanies                          the company that refuses to pay is in   throw five law firms at someone and
            Arkansas trucking company,     another state, how much money will it   scare them.”
        Hotfoot Logistics has collected from an   take to go to that state and try to get it
        out of state delinquent account after   through the court system?     TRuCking goes on-deMand
        seven long years of litigation.        For Hotfoot, the transaction took   The same concept that enables peo-
            David Lasater, the CEO of Hotfoot   place in Little Rock. Driver Pierce had   ple to get a taxi, private car or rideshare
        Logistics in Little Rock, Ark., has   started his trip from Cabot, and the bill   from an app on their mobile phone has
        perhaps made it easier for Arkansas   was sent to and from Little Rock.   inspired a Nevada company to extend
        trucking companies to collect from     “It might cost $10,000 to get the   this application to the trucking industry.
        out-of-state creditors. All because of an   $1,000, and they were using that to
        unpaid $5,700 trucking bill.       say they can’t afford to come after us,”
            The bill was “the perfect amount of   Lasater said. “We decided we had to
        money. It’s enough that it hurts, but not   fight that out. If it was $100,000, every-
        enough we can afford to send lawyers   body knows you have to go after it. This
        after it for years,” Lasater said.  is death by a thousand cuts.”
            In Nov. 2008, Hotfoot agreed       The Arkansas Supreme Court ruled
        to a contract with Shipping Points   that Hotfoot did have the ability to sue
        Marketing and its broker Western   an Arizona-based entity in Arkansas
        Brokerage of Phoenix to transport pro-  because much of the business was
        duce from Arizona to Albany, N.Y., and   transacted in Arkansas through faxes.
        Scranton, Pa.                      After the Supreme Court issued its rul-
            Laseter assigned the job to Justin   ing in November, Shipping Points set-  Uber and other “sharing economy”
        Pierce, a driver with Freight Ambulance   tled with Lasater rather than continue   applications is the inspiration behind
        of Cabot, Ark. Pierce delivered the   the court battle.               On the Move Systems Corp. (OMVS) to
        goods and returned the bill of lad-    The Supreme Court also issued a   bring a unique, on-demand services to
        ing to Lasater, who sent the invoice to   ruling that could have a huge effect on   the U.S. trucking industry, the company
        Phoenix.                           his fellow Arkansas trucking  brokers   announced today.
            When the broker disbanded later,   and carriers conducting business with   The Henderson, Nev., company has
        Shipping Points said it wasn’t respon-  parties outside of Arkansas.  begun development on a new program
        sible for the balance. However, Shipping   “They carried all the water for the   designed to save time and money on
        Points and Western Brokerage had the   entire industry,” said Shannon Newton,   trucking by connecting users directly
        same billing address, and David Fishgold   the president of the Arkansas Trucking   with individual service providers.
        ran Shipping Points and Louis Fishgold   Association. “This was a really big    “It’s a revolutionary business
        ran Western Brokerage.             problem. This is especially important   model with the potential to make inter-
            Lasater sued both companies and   for small carriers that don’t have the   state shipping easier and more efficient
        the Fishgolds in Arkansas. The case was   resources to chase down creditors across   than ever before. OMVS is now build-
        dismissed originally because of jurisdic-  the country.”              ing the tools to tap that potential,” said
        tion issues, but Lasater doubled down    “It would have been a serious   OMVS CEO Robert Wilson.
        and kept appealing.                financial hit,” Lasater said. “We would
            Small Arkansas trucking companies   have gotten stuck for six years of lawyer                   

        aRkansas TRuCking RepoRT  |  issue 2 2015                                                                 13
   8   9   10   11   12   13   14   15   16   17   18