Published August 17, 2026
Federal juries have now ruled against Uber in both bellwether trials held so far in the consolidated passenger sexual assault litigation, MDL No. 3084, pending before Judge Charles R. Breyer in the Northern District of California. In February 2026, an Arizona jury awarded $8.5 million to a woman who alleged she was raped by her Uber driver in 2023. In April 2026, a North Carolina jury found Uber liable for battery after a driver grabbed a passenger's thigh, awarding $5,000 — a smaller dollar figure, but the second consecutive jury to side with a plaintiff.
The North Carolina case also produced a ruling that reaches beyond its own verdict: Judge Breyer determined that Uber qualifies as a "common carrier" under state law, meaning it owes riders a heightened, non-delegable duty of care. That classification — if it holds up and is applied in other states — raises the bar Uber has to clear to defend against future claims across the roughly 4,300 cases now pending in the MDL.
The next round of bellwether trials is scheduled to begin in California in September 2026. Bellwether trials don't resolve every case in an MDL, but they give both sides — and outside observers — a read on how juries respond to the evidence, which typically shapes settlement negotiations for the thousands of cases still waiting behind them.
This litigation covers passengers who allege they were sexually assaulted or harassed by an Uber driver. If that's happened to you, see Atumio's rideshare sexual assault case page for a free, no-obligation review, or start your case review directly.