Commercial Motor Vehicles: Understanding DOT Compliance and FMSCA Regulation

Prior to establishing Childress Law, Mr. Childress worked as an attorney at Scopelitis, Garvin, Light, Hanson & Feary, the largest transportation law firm in the U.S. While at Scopelitis, he worked primarily in the firm's transportation safety and compliance practice group. Then and now, Mr. Childress serves transportation and manufacturing clients on a multitude of issues including regulatory issues associated with various DOT administrations such as FMCSA, NHTSA, and FAA. He also assists carriers and manufacturers with various issues related to Electronic Logging Devices, including third party review of manufacturer’s self-certification requirements and auditing of a carrier’s ELD compliance programs and other safety technologies. Mr. Childress has assisted all manner of motor carriers from carriers with thousands of vehicles down to those carriers with 20 or fewer vehicles. He previously served as part of a Third-Party Auditor Team appointed by NHTSA to oversee a major auto manufacturer regarding their NHTSA obligations under the Safety Act.

Mr. Wiseman has spent over a decade representing some the nation's largest and most sophisticated motor carriers and transportation entities, primarily in the area of USDOT safety and compliance. Prior to joining Childress Law, he was a partner with Scopelitis, Garvin, Light, Hanson & Feary and helped lead the firm's DOT Safety & Compliance practice group. Mr. Wiseman has helped carriers build state-of-the-art safety programs to help minimize highway accidents and improve regulatory compliance. He has helped carriers avoid Unsatisfactory safety ratings and civil penalties and has represented them before the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and federal courts. Mr. Wiseman is a regular speaker at industry events, lecturing on topics such as the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations, driver qualification, hours-of-service, CSA/SMS, drug/alcohol testing, and DOT enforcement. He also is a frequent contributor to industry publications and has also taught a course on USDOT safety at the IU Robert H. McKinney School of Law in Indianapolis. Mr. Wiseman is licensed to practice law before all state and federal courts in Indiana.