Enforceability Of Arbitration Provisions Is Uncertain, Threatening To Upset The Settlement Applecart.
Joel Rosenblatt, reporting for Bloomberg on August 18, 2016, explains why San Francisco District Court Judge Edward Chen’s rejection of a class-settlement between Uber and its drivers may now give Uber the upper hand: the Ninth Circuit is poised to rule on the enforceability of arbitration clauses in Uber driver contracts in another case, and if it enforces the arbitration clauses, Uber could force drivers to individually arbitrate their claims, eviscerating the class action.
Judge Chen, who rejected the $100M settlement as being not generous enough to the Uber drivers, had previously ruled that Uber’s arbitration clauses could not be enforced. However, the Ninth Circuit could overturn his ruling that the arbitration clauses are invalid in another pending case involving Uber drivers. It would be an odd twist of fate if the Judge’s ruling results in a worse outcome for the drivers.
The case brings together some great legal talent that includes Shannon Liss-Riordan for the drivers, and Ted Boutrous for Uber.
Stay tuned.
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