Video: Food Truck Attorney Talks About Lawsuit Against Monrovia

An attorney for the Southern California Mobile Food Vendors Association spoke to Reason.com last week about the lawsuit his organization filed against Monrovia after the banned food trucks from the district in 2010.

The organization represents about 130 food truck vendors in Southern California, according to Dermer. They contend that the city's ordinance against food trucks .

"In California, you're not allowed to ban mobile vending," Jeffrey Dermer, an attorney for SCMFV, told Reason.

In the video, Dermer referred to statements made to the media by a city official where he described the ordinance as an effort to protect local small businesses.

in 2010 that it would be unfair to allow food trucks to operate in Old Town because they wouldn't have to pay taxes and fees to the Old Town Advisory Board merchants association.

"This is just trying to keep a certain ambiance in downtown and also recognize the contribution that brick and mortar businesses make that mobile food vendors don't make," Adams said of the ordinance. "To have someone say that they want to come and take advantage of that without contributing to it just doesn't pass the simple test of fairness," he said.

Dermer's take: "Perfect, they're admitting that its a competitive ordinance, which is illegal."