Published
June 8, 2026
Updated
June 10, 2026
If you shopped at an Ace Hardware store or acehardware.com since May 2022, here is what the new price-fixing complaint claims — and why there is nothing to file yet.
Allegations Only · No Settlement Yet
This article describes a class action complaint. The statements below are unproven allegations. Ace Hardware Corporation has not been found liable, there is no certified class, and nothing to claim at this time. This page is informational and is not legal advice.
What Is This About?
Ace Hardware — the retailer-owned cooperative behind thousands of locally owned Ace stores — is facing a proposed class action lawsuit alleging that it ran a long-running scheme to coordinate retail prices across its member stores, leaving shoppers paying more than they would have in a competitive market.The case is captioned Twomey v. Ace Hardware Corp., et al., Case No. 1:26-cv-05320, and is pending in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. According to the complaint, it was filed on May 7, 2026. The named defendants include Ace Hardware Corporation, Ace Retail Holdings, Ace Retail Group, and software provider Epicor Software Corporation. Ace Hardware has not been found liable, and the claims remain unproven.
Status
Complaint Filed
Proposed class action · Twomey v. Ace Hardware Corp., et al.
Allegation
Coordinated prices via store data and "price zones"
Suit says Ace and Epicor used store-level data to move prices in unison with nearby competitors
Can I Claim?
No — nothing to claim yet
No settlement, no fund, no claim form at this stage
What the Lawsuit Alleges
At the heart of the complaint is the way Ace allegedly used its cooperative structure to align prices that independent stores would normally set on their own. The suit contends that, for more than a decade, Ace organized member stores into locally defined geographic "price zones" and directed the stores in each zone to raise prices on specified items so they would move in unison with prices at nearby competitors. The complaint characterizes the admitted goal of these arrangements as a way to "boost margins and present a more consistent pricing image to consumers."The complaint also describes a "Level Pricing" system layered on top of the zones. According to the suit, each price zone has a baseline "Ace retail" price (Level A), with optional higher tiers — "Level 1" and "Level 2" — for stores that want higher prices and margins. Because the recommended Ace retail, Level 1, and Level 2 prices allegedly move in tandem whenever the cooperative raises pricing for an item in a zone, the complaint contends stores can coordinate price movement even when they sit at different levels, functioning as a kind of pre-commitment to align with nearby competitors.
Epicor, which the complaint says provides the point-of-sale and inventory-management software used across Ace stores, is accused of facilitating the system. According to the lawsuit, Epicor collected store-level pricing, sales, and inventory data and then distributed pricing reports and alerts back to member stores — information the complaint says made coordinated price increases possible.
The complaint frames this as a violation of federal antitrust law, which broadly prohibits agreements among competitors to fix or coordinate prices. The theory is that independently owned Ace stores are supposed to compete with one another and with other retailers, and that funneling them into shared price zones with common data allegedly replaced that competition with coordination. As with any complaint, these are allegations only; no court has ruled on whether Ace or Epicor did anything unlawful.
Is There an Ace Hardware Settlement Yet?
No. This is important: Twomey v. Ace Hardware Corp. is a newly filed lawsuit, not a settlement.That means:
• There is no settlement fund.
• There is no claim form.
• There is no payout, and no deadline to act.
• Shoppers do not need to do anything at this stage.
The filing of a complaint is the very beginning of a case, not the end. Ace Hardware has not been found liable simply because a lawsuit was filed, and the case remains pending unless and until a newer docket entry says otherwise. If the case is ever resolved through a settlement, or a class is certified, a formal claims process with its own eligibility rules and deadlines would be announced separately.
Who Could Be Affected?
The complaint seeks to represent a nationwide class of anyone in the United States who purchased products directly from an Ace Hardware store or through acehardware.com from May 7, 2022 through the present. Because no class has been certified yet, the exact class definition and covered time period are not final and could change.That is a broad group. Ace's network spans thousands of neighborhood hardware stores, so the proposed class could potentially include millions of everyday shoppers who bought tools, paint, fasteners, lawn-and-garden supplies, or other household items. If you shopped at an Ace store or online during that window, it may be worth holding on to your receipts or order confirmation emails in case a class is later certified and a claims process opens. There is nothing to file right now.
Why Retail Price-Coordination Cases Matter
Antitrust law treats price competition as a baseline consumer protection: when rival sellers independently set prices, shoppers benefit from the resulting pressure to keep prices low. Cases like this one test whether technology and shared data have been used to quietly soften that competition.A growing wave of lawsuits accuses companies of using common software platforms and algorithms to align prices that would otherwise be set independently — turning a third-party vendor's data feeds into an alleged hub for coordination. A prominent example is the RealPage rental-software antitrust litigation, where landlords were accused of using a shared algorithm to coordinate rents; another is the Lucky Strike bowling monopoly class action, which alleges consolidation rather than coordination drove up consumer prices. The Ace complaint fits that pattern, framing a cooperative's pricing tools and "price zones" as the mechanism. Whether the allegations hold up is a question for the court, but the case is a useful reminder that "everyone in the area charges about the same" is not always the product of ordinary market forces.
What Happens Next?
From here, the case will move through the normal early stages of federal litigation. The defendants may file responses to the complaint or motions to dismiss, the parties may exchange information in discovery, and the plaintiff would, at some point, ask the court to certify a nationwide class. The suit also seeks unspecified damages and a court order to stop the alleged conduct. Any of these steps can take months, and the case could be amended, narrowed, or resolved along the way.OpenClassActions.com will continue watching the docket for any major updates, including a motion to dismiss, settlement talks, class certification activity, or any future claim form.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is there an Ace Hardware settlement yet?
No. The case is a proposed class action lawsuit. There is no settlement, no fund, and no claim form. Ace Hardware has not been found liable just because a lawsuit was filed.What does the lawsuit allege?
According to the complaint, Ace Hardware organized member stores into geographic price zones and worked with Epicor to coordinate price increases using store-level sales and inventory data, in violation of antitrust law. The allegations are unproven.Do I need to file a claim?
No. Because this is a lawsuit and not a settlement, there is nothing to claim and no deadline. If a settlement or certified class ever produces a claims process, deadlines and eligibility would be announced then.Sources
• Class Action Complaint — Twomey v. Ace Hardware Corp., et al., U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Case No. 1:26-cv-05320: Complaint (PDF)• U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois — docket for Twomey v. Ace Hardware Corp., et al., Case No. 1:26-cv-05320, via CourtListener: CourtListener Docket Search
• Reuters — "Ace Hardware sued in US court over alleged retail price coordination": Reuters
• Bloomberg Law — "Ace Hardware Accused of Using Store Sales Data to Jack Up Prices": Bloomberg Law
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Status
Complaint Filed — Proposed Class Action
Case Title
Twomey v. Ace Hardware Corp., et al.
Case Number
1:26-cv-05320
Court
U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois
Date Filed
May 7, 2026
Official Court Page
CourtListener Docket
