Uber found liable in another case where a driver was accused of sexual assault

A federal jury found rideshare giant Uber liable for a driver accused of grabbing the inner thigh of a passenger getting out of the front seat of his car and asking if he could "keep it with him."

The plaintiff claimed in a court filing that the incident happened in March 2019 when she was 19 years old and hailed a ride just before 2 a.m. She was awarded $5,000 in damages by jurors in North Carolina, one of the woman’s lawyers, Ellen Hurd, said. 

Why you should care:

The case is considered a bellwether for sexual assault lawsuits filed against Uber in multiple jurisdictions across the country. It is the third that has gone to trial and the ruling could serve as an indicator of how the other more than 3,000 cases may be decided.

Monday’s verdict comes on the heels of a jury in Arizona awarding $8.5 million in February to a woman who said a driver raped her. Conversely, a California jury determined the company was not liable for an alleged assault that happened there.

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What they're saying:

In an emailed statement to the Associated Press, Uber noted the small size of the judgment and pointed out that jurors only found that a battery had occurred and not sexual assault.

"The jury’s award here should further bring these cases back to reality, as it represents a tiny fraction of previous demands," the Uber statement said, adding that the company felt there were strong grounds for an appeal. 

The backstory:

Uber has long maintained that its drivers, as so-called gig workers, are not company employees and it is not liable for their conduct. However, U.S. District Court Judge Charles Breyer found that the company was a "common carrier" under North Carolina law and, as such, Uber could be liable.

Hurd explained that meant the jurors only had to decide if the attack happened. Uber stated that the driver denied touching her and stated that the plaintiff never reported it to law enforcement. The company said it only learned of the incident three years later when the lawsuit was filed. 

The plaintiff’s attorneys argued that the fact it was not reported to law enforcement does not mean it did not happen. During the trial, Hurd added, the jurors heard from the driver, the plaintiff, as well as the plaintiff’s friends who backed her version of events.