McDowell v. J.B. Hunt Transport Inc.

McDowell v. J.B. Hunt Transport Inc., U.S. District Court of the Northern District of Illinois (21 IER Cases 1643), Decided Sept. 28, 2004

Decision: No private right of action exists under the Federal Omnibus Transportation Employee Testing Act of 1991, which authorized Department of Transportation (DOT) drug and alcohol testing rules.

Background: Kenneth McDowell was employed by J.B. Hunt Transport from June through November, 2001. He was terminated for violating the company’s Controlled Substance Abuse Policy for taking medication prescribed to his wife.

Among other claims, McDowell alleged that he never refused a drug test and should not have been terminated without a reasonable suspicion drug test “required” under 49 CFR §382.307(b). He also argued that the company’s suspicion of his drug use was not “reasonable” under that regulation.

J.B. Hunt argued that McDowell’s claim was barred as a matter of law because no private right of action exists to enforce such DOT regulations. The company moved to dismiss McDowell’s claims for failure to state a claim upon which relief may be granted.

Court’s Opinion: The U.S. District Court of the Northern District of Illinois agreed with the company and found that because the Federal Omnibus Transportation Employee Testing Act of 1991 did not create a private right of action, McDowell failed to allege a claim on which relief can be granted.