Friday, May 1, 2026

Uber Technologies, Inc., Passenger Sexual Assault Litigation (MDL 3084) Surges Past 3,400 Cases as California Courts Absorb 33 New Filings

The Uber Technologies, Inc., Passenger Sexual Assault Litigation (MDL 3084) has accelerated to roughly 3,410 pending actions (3,291 per JPML's March 1 report, plus ~119 new filings tracked since), with 33 new complaints filed in the past week alone — nearly all concentrated in the Northern District of California. This volume spike comes as Bloomberg Law News reports Uber's defense team remains publicly confident following recent plaintiff verdicts, suggesting the company is prepared to absorb additional trial risk rather than pursue global settlement. The filing velocity in Uber Technologies, Inc., Passenger Sexual Assault Litigation (MDL 3084) now rivals the GLP-1 RAs Gastroparesis Litigation (MDL 3094), which added 29 new cases, and outpaces the Hair Relaxer Litigation (MDL 3060) at 53 filings, though both pharmaceutical dockets have commanded more attention in recent briefings. Notably, the Lyft Passenger Sex Assault Litigation (MDL 3171) continues to build parallel momentum with 3 new filings in the same California district, creating potential consolidation pressure as both rideshare dockets mature before Judge Edward J. Davila.

Trump EPA Signals Ethylene Oxide Deregulation, Threatening Ethylene Oxide Sterilization Litigation Momentum

The Ethylene Oxide Sterilization Litigation faces a potentially destabilizing regulatory shift after the Trump administration's EPA moved toward deregulating ethylene oxide emissions, according to an April 29 report from Prism Reports. The proposed rollback would weaken the Biden-era emissions standards that helped anchor causation theories in the growing wave of personal injury claims against sterilization facilities in Illinois, Georgia, and New Mexico. Plaintiffs in these cases — which remain fragmented across state and federal courts without MDL consolidation — have relied heavily on EPA risk assessments to establish general causation for lymphoma and leukemia claims. A formal deregulation would arm defendants with federal preemption arguments and complicate expert admissibility under Daubert, particularly in cases where EPA science formed the backbone of plaintiffs' exposure modeling. The regulatory action arrives as the litigation is still in early case development, with no bellwether trials scheduled and discovery just beginning in several state court venues.

NEC Formula Litigation Faces Judicial Skepticism as Juries and Judges Diverge on Causation

The NEC Formula Litigation confronts an emerging credibility gap between jury verdicts and judicial oversight, with The National Law Review reporting April 30 on recent cases where judges have aggressively scrutinized plaintiff expert methodology despite prior jury awards. The litigation, now at roughly 796 pending actions (779 per JPML's March 1 report, plus ~17 new filings), has produced several substantial plaintiff verdicts in state court, but federal judges in Illinois and Pennsylvania have increasingly excluded general causation experts or granted summary judgment on Daubert grounds. This divergence creates strategic uncertainty for plaintiffs' leadership, which must decide whether to prioritize state court velocity — where juries have been more receptive — or invest resources in shoring up federal expert admissibility. The tension is particularly acute given the litigation's relatively modest docket size compared to other infant product MDLs, making each federal exclusion order proportionally more damaging to aggregate settlement leverage.