Cullinane v. Uber Technologies

Rachel Cullinane, Jacqueline Nuñez, Elizabeth Schaul, and Ross McDonagh (riders) (plaintiffs) were users of an Uber Technologies, Inc. (Uber) (defendant) ride-sharing mobile application. During registration on the application, the riders clicked through three distinct screens: an account-creation screen, a profile-creation screen, and a payment-method-registration screen. For two of the riders, the third screen contained a black background with gray bars, white text-entry spaces, a number pad, and light gray, bolded text. For the other two riders, the third screen included an additional blue PayPal button and slightly varied positioning of the screen elements. For all four riders, the screen also included the phrase, “By creating an Uber account, you agree to the” in dark gray text on the black background. Beneath this phrase was a gray rectangle with the phrase, “Terms of Service & Privacy Policy” in bold white text. The gray rectangle was a clickable button linked to Uber’s terms and conditions, a 10-page document that included an arbitration provision covering all disputes related to the application and its services and that waived the parties’ rights to a jury trial and to class-action lawsuits. The riders filed a putative class-action suit against Uber in Massachusetts state court, alleging that Uber violated state consumer-protection statutes by charging users fictitious or inflated fees. Uber removed the case to federal district court and moved to compel arbitration. The district court granted the motion to compel and dismissed the case. The riders appealed to the First Circuit.