Uber Sexual Assault

Today, a federal court rejected Uber’s motion to amend a previous discovery order in the Multidistrict Litigation (MDL) case. Uber had requested the court to establish a firm deadline of November 27, 2023, for the production of custodial documents. The company argued that the existing order, which mandates the continuous production of documents “created through the present and on an ongoing basis,” placed an undue and disproportionate burden on them. Uber further contended that this ongoing requirement violated the proportionality and relevance standards outlined in the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.

Uber has filed a motion requesting that certain internal documents remain confidential, arguing that their public release could harm the company’s competitive position and violate privacy interests. The company’s legal team contends that the documents contain sensitive business plans, privileged communications, and legal strategies, which, if disclosed, would put Uber at a disadvantage. Uber is seeking to prevent the release of these documents, even with redactions.

However, the distinction must be made between genuinely confidential business information and material that may simply be embarrassing if exposed.

Lawyers are in disagreement over deadlines related to privilege log disputes and document production. Plaintiffs argue that Uber’s privilege logs, which include thousands of entries, are overly broad and wrongly classify business communications as privileged. They suspect Uber is shielding non-privileged documents by simply copying lawyers on them. In response, Plaintiffs proposed a revised deposition schedule to allow more time for challenging these designations. Uber, however, contends that most of its designations are valid and argues that depositions should proceed without delay. The parties remain at an impasse, with Plaintiffs seeking more flexibility and Uber pushing for coordination with California state court proceedings.

Uber has begun testing video recording during rides in select cities, including Washington, D.C., allowing drivers to use front-facing cameras to record their trips. Currently in the pilot phase and not widely available, this feature complements the company’s existing audio recording option. Both video and audio recordings are encrypted and can only be accessed if a driver or rider submits a safety report.

While this initiative isn’t a perfect solution, it’s a step in the right direction—one that is long overdue. Such measures could have helped protect many women who have been victims of sexual assault and rape by Uber drivers.