The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Assn.'s two lawsuits against Mayflower Transit will proceed after a judge denied Mayflower's motions to dismiss.

The two lawsuits were filed against Mayflower Transit Inc., of Fenton, Mo., in 1998 by OOIDA with members Woody Chambers of Woodchuck Leasing, Mark Dudgeon and John Neidig.
The first suit claims violations of the federal truth-in-leasing regulations by the carrier's failure to return fuel-tax credits on a current basis and to return fuel- tax credits and other funds held in escrow accounts to owner-operators within the required time period after their lease agreements had expired. The second suit alleges that Mayflower unlawfully over-charged the owner-operators for insurance products that they purchased through Mayflower, which is also a violation of federal truth-in-leasing regulations.
In its request to dismiss the actions, Mayflower argued that the plaintiffs have no private right of action under the leasing regulations; that the cases should be deferred to the DOT, and state claims should not be retained after the federal causes of action are dismissed; and that it is not liable because it is not a signatory to any lease agreements between its agents and the individual plaintiffs.
Monday, U.S. District Court Judge Sarah Evans Barker rejected all three arguments, pointing out in her ruling that the ICC Termination Act explicitly provided for private enforcement of the leasing regulations in court. Because she refused to dismiss the federal claims, she also retained jurisdiction over the state claims. She also rejected Mayflower's claim that it had no liability for contracts entered into by its authorized agents.