The Long and Winding Road

It often seems as if technology and business move a lot faster than the law, and Uber and Lyft could turn out to be an example. We know you love them and we know why. Just a little while ago, if you needed a ride here in sprawling, public-transportation poor Los Angeles, you either had to find a friend or family member willing to take you, or fork over as much as $50.00 or more for a cross-town taxi. Today, however, all it takes is a smart phone, a credit card, and a significantly smaller sum of money to get a ride from drivers who are typically quite pleasant and professional.

It's easy to see why these services have become so popular nationwide, but from a personal injury law point of view, they might ultimately represent another one of these cases of the law being caught unawares. Presently, if a taxi or limousine company fails to properly ensure that their drivers are plying their trade safety, they can sometimes by held accountable by an automotive or motorcycle accident lawyer. But what if an Uber or Lyft driver gets involved in an injury accident?

At the moment, the services are sometimes paying damages when drivers are involved in personal injury accidents and they are also being sued in some cases of alleged assaults by drivers. A currently ongoing employment lawsuit, however, has the company arguing that they are, in fact, a software platform and not truly an employer of its drivers at all. Taken to an extreme, a legal victory for Uber could have the ridesharing services arguing its drivers are solely responsible for any injuries, regardless of their undeniable role in providing employment for drivers. It's just another case of the law getting more and more complex. It's also another reason why lawyers like our own Cameron Yadidi have no problem at all keeping busy!