Actual Cases

The following are representative cases in which I've rendered an opinion or consulted with attorneys about the case:

NEW JERSEY

Woman bicyclist suffered a closed head injury after she was struck by an Uber driver transporting a rider.  One issue in the case was whether the GPS tracking data was accurate as it showed the driver moving at slow speeds contrary to other evidence about the nature of the collision.  Independent contractor status was another issue raised by the defense.

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OREGON

Uber driver was hailed to take an extremely intoxicated woman home.  The driver, after boarding the rider, drove her to his residence where he raped and sodomized her before taking her home.  Independent contractor status was an issue in the case.  Another issue was whether the conduct of the driver was foreseeable in light of the circumstances and the policies of the TNC.

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TEXAS

Members of a criminal enterprise tricked an elderly man into believing his son was going to prison unless he paid several thousand dollars to criminals pretending to be associated with the Texas court system.  The criminals then sent an Uber driver—using the Uber package service—to the elderly man's residence to fetch the cash and deliver it elsewhere.  When the Uber driver arrived at the elderly man's residence, he pulled a gun on the Uber driver believing her to be one of the criminals.  Although the Uber driver tried to explain she was merely driving for Uber's package service, the elderly man shot her to death in his driveway.

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​GEORGIA

When a fee dispute erupted between a Lyft driver and his riders, the driver produced a handgun and shot the male rider in front of his girlfriend.  The male rider suffered severe and permanent injuries.  Driver violated TNC policies by having a firearm in his vehicle while transporting riders.  Independent contractor status was raised as a defense in the case.

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CALIFORNIA (LOS ANGELES)

Riders severely injured in a crash as a result of TNC driver's negligence, but it was also alleged that the driver improperly maintained his vehicle in that the tires on the care were bald.  One strongly contested factual issue was the TNC's inspection and maintenance policies for their driver's cars.

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NEW JERSEY

Woman rider was permanently disfigured when she was struck as a pedestrian by a motor vehicle immediately following her ride with Lyft.  The rider, a teenage girl, was extremely intoxicated and vomited in the vehicle.  The driver immediately pulled over and forcefully removed the rider from his vehicle and left her in a high traffic area where she was struck by another vehicle.

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OHIO

TNC driver was fatally wounded when he came under attack by armed carjackers in a criminal conspiracy to steal cars.  Issues in the case included whether the TNC warned the driver that his rider was hailing from a high-crime area where another driver had been carjacked only hours earlier.