Uber Technologies Inc. is headed to court to defend itself against a bicyclist “doored” by a driver’s vehicle on a busy street in bike-friendly San Francisco — the first such case to go to trial in California on claims that the company usually settles privately.
“Uber has told us they will not settle with us unless it’s a confidential settlement, so Velarde and I would have to give up our right to ever talk to anybody about what happened,” said Michael Stephenson, Velarde’s lawyer. “We aren’t willing to do that.” Besides Velarde’s resistance to Uber’s demand that he remain quiet about the accident, Stephenson said he also believed the company owned him more than $1 million. In pretrial testimony, Velarde said he has drained his savings, lost his job and future income, and ability to support his family.