Two national transportation associations filed "friend of the court" briefs to support Rochester City Lines in its lawsuit before the Minnesota Supreme Court, according to a press release from the transportation company.
The United Motorcoach Association will file a brief about the "unfair government-subsidized competition" against RCL, the press release says. The American Bus Association's brief will analyze alleged "conflict of interest, bias and contractor predetermination issues."
The Minnesota Supreme Court agreed to hear RCL's case against the City of Rochester in mid-June. The company's claims were dismissed four times by Olmsted County District Judge Joseph Chase in 2012 and 2013. The Minnesota Court of Appeals also ruled against RCL in April.
RCL, locally owned by Daniel Holter and operated in Rochester for almost 50 years, says the city took the company's property without paying for it, the bidding process for bus contracts was unfair and violated RCL's rights to due process, and Rochester City Council member Michael Wojcik defamed the company.
"It has been a long and lonely road fighting the tax-supported city government with our family's own money to get to the Supreme Court," Holter said in the press release. "It is a great relief and very gratifying to have others back us up who themselves would be adversely affected by the lower courts' decisions in our case."
