A judge has rejected a motion by a group of Vermont gasoline retailers and wholesalers to dismiss a price-fixing lawsuit against them.
In her ruling, Judge Helen Toor of Chittenden Superior Court dismissed parts of the suit, but let stand others, which means it will continue.
The class action suit, filed by the law firm Bailey and Glasser, based in Charleston, West Virginia and the Burlington Law Practice, contends that gasoline prices in Chittenden, Franklin and Grand Isle Counties were set artificially high by four businesses, including R.L. Vallee and Champlain Farms.
The suit contends that the evidence “points directly to an extensive price-fixing scheme of long duration.”
In the past, Sen. Bernie Sanders has called for an investigation into gas prices in Northwestern Vermont.
Last year lawmakers in Montpelier held a hearing on the issue where they were told by one industry expert that profit margins for gasoline retailers in the Burlington market are higher than most other parts of the country.
Industry representatives say gasoline costs are just one part of the pricing equation.
In the ruling on the motion to dismiss, the court stressed that it’s still unclear whether the evidence will support the allegations made in the suit.
