Arkansas Supreme Court Affirms $75M Verdict Against Old Dominion
The Arkansas Supreme Court affirmed a $75 million jury verdict against Old Dominion Freight Line and driver Aaron Marvell Foster, vacating a court of appeals ruling that had ordered a new trial over damages. Six first responders sued after a 2018 crash in which Foster's rig overturned and caught fire, releasing vapor from a 565-pound barrel of formic acid. Old Dominion did not tell responders the load was hazardous for more than five hours.
The court rejected Old Dominion's argument that a heightened toxic-tort causation standard applied, finding this was an isolated-exposure case where a treating physician's testimony sufficed. It also rejected the carrier's claim that the Hazardous Materials Transportation Act preempted the responders' negligence theory, holding that a duty to voluntarily disclose hazmat presence is "substantively the same" as federal notification rules. The court further held the professional-rescuer's doctrine did not bar recovery because responders were not trained, equipped or paid to face hazmat exposure, and Old Dominion's nondisclosure defeated the doctrine regardless.
The court affirmed on all twelve points Old Dominion raised, including evidentiary rulings on expert testimony and exclusion of impeachment evidence against a state trooper witness.
What's next
- Watch for a petition for rehearing before the Arkansas Supreme Court's mandate issues.
- Carriers hauling sub-1,001-pound hazmat loads should reassess voluntary-disclosure practices to first responders at crash scenes.
All sources
- Opinion: Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc.; And Aaron Marvell Foster v. Frank McMillion, Allen Jones, Carlton Pettus, Hunter Bokker, Bengi Bokker, and Zack Billingsley — CourtListener (Supreme Court of Arkansas), 2026-11-05
