6:09 AMThe Load Letter — May 25, 2026

One week after the Supreme Court's unanimous broker liability ruling, truckload spot rates are already hitting all-time highs — because compliant, qualified carriers just became the only carriers serious brokers will touch, and everyone is competing for the same shrinking pool. Today's briefing covers what the ruling looks like in practice one week in, why FMCSA Administrator Derek Barrs publicly committing to cleaning up the carrier registry makes the capacity crunch structural rather than temporary, and a $50 million nuclear verdict against a Texas carrier that may not even exist anymore — a preview of where plaintiff attorneys are looking next. We also get into the Florida-to-California reefer handoff hitting full stride, three simultaneous signals pointing toward serious cross-border freight growth in South Texas, and STG emerging from Chapter 11 as a leaner competitor in the intermodal space. The liability landscape changed permanently last week. The rate market already knows it. Here's what to do with that heading into the week.