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Following months of investigation, Maurice Blackburn Lawyers has confirmed it has officially filed its highly anticipated class action against major ridesharing giant Uber.
Source: Official Twitter account of Maurice Blackburn
Maurice Blackburn filed its class action against Uber in the Victorian Supreme Court on Friday, which it said will hold the platform accountable for “destroying the livelihoods” of thousands of taxi, hire car, charter vehicle and limousine drivers and licence owners across the country.
“Make no mistake, this will be a landmark case regarding the alleged illegal operations of Uber in Australia and the devastating impact that has had on the lives of hard-working and law-abiding citizens here,” Maurice Blackburn national head of class actions Andrew Watson said.
“The sheer scale of the case means it is shaping as one of the largest class actions in Australian history.
“It is not acceptable for a business to place itself above the law and operate illegally to the disadvantage of others. We’ve got a strong case, a strong team and substantial support from thousands of drivers, operators and licence owners nationwide.”
So far, over 6,000 participants have registered for the action, according to Maurice Blackburn.
“Uber sells the idea that it does things differently, but in reality and as we allege, this has meant operating unlawfully, using devious programs like ‘Greyball’. All of this caused extensive loss and damage to law-abiding taxi and hire car drivers, operators and licence holders across the country,” Maurice Blackburn senior associate Elizabeth O’Shea said.
“Uber came in and exploited people by operating outside of regulations, and it was Uber’s conduct that led to horrible losses being suffered by our group members. For those reasons, we are targeting the multibillion-dollar company Uber and its associated entities to provide redress to those affected.”
Commenting further, the class action’s lead plaintiff, Nick Andrianakis, who is a taxi driver, operator and licence owner from Brunswick in Melbourne’s inner north noted:
“My father owned and drove cabs, so it’s been an industry and job that’s in my blood and that I’ve loved my whole life – then suddenly that was all taken away because of the impact of Uber’s illegal activities.
“I can clearly remember the day it all became too much – I just stopped driving that day and had to go home to be with my wife. It’s a shocking thing to think of a life’s work being stripped away from you, but this is what’s happened to thousands of people nationwide.”
Mr Andrianakis concluded: “The way this all happened was not right, so now I am standing up along with thousands of other Australians that have been devastated by Uber’s alleged illegal operations to hold Uber to account.”
Emma Musgrave (née Ryan) is the managing editor, professional services at Momentum Media.
Emma has worked for Momentum Media since 2015, including five years spent as the editor of the company's legal brand - Lawyers Weekly. Throughout her time at Momentum, she has been responsible for breaking some of the biggest stories in corporate Australia. In addition, she has produced exclusive multimedia and event content related to the company's respective brands and audiences.
Prior to joining Momentum Media, Emma worked in breakfast radio, delivering news to the Central West region of NSW, before taking on a radio journalist role at Southern Cross Austereo, based in Townsville, North Queensland.
She holds a Bachelor of Communications (Journalism) degree from Charles Sturt University.
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