A former rideshare driver is taking legal action against two major transportation network companies and the City of Chicago, alleging wrongful deactivation and constitutional violations. Ceresa Cohran filed a complaint in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois on November 19, 2024, naming Uber Technologies, Inc., Lyft, Inc., and the City of Chicago as defendants.
The lawsuit stems from Cohran's deactivation as a driver for both Uber and Lyft following an alleged safety incident she claims never occurred. Cohran worked with Uber from 2017 until April 2024 and briefly with Lyft from April to May 2024. The plaintiff asserts that her rights under the Fourteenth Amendment were violated due to the enforcement of Chicago's ordinance Rule TNP 1.10, which mandates notification to the city when drivers are deactivated by transportation network providers (TNPs). According to Cohran, this ordinance infringes upon her due process and equal protection rights by allowing deactivations without adequate procedural safeguards or opportunities for appeal.
Cohran’s complaint details her experience with Uber, where she was banned from their platform on April 6, 2024, without being informed of specific allegations until weeks later. She was accused of spitting on a passenger but denies any such incident took place. Despite appealing internally within Uber, she received no response. Subsequently, Lyft also deactivated her account citing Rule TNP 1.10 after being notified by either Uber or the City of Chicago about her alleged misconduct. Cohran contends that these actions have unjustly barred her from earning a living as a rideshare driver.
In addition to challenging the constitutionality of Rule TNP 1.10 under federal law (42 U.S.C. § 1983), Cohran accuses Uber of defamation for communicating false statements regarding her conduct to other parties and claims tortious interference with prospective economic advantage against both Uber and the City of Chicago for disrupting her business relationship with Lyft. Furthermore, she alleges negligence on Lyft’s part for failing to independently verify allegations before deactivating her account.
Cohran seeks several forms of relief through this lawsuit: declaratory judgments declaring certain ordinances unconstitutional; injunctions preventing further enforcement while litigation is ongoing; compensatory damages for lost income and emotional distress; punitive damages against Uber; restitution from Lyft concerning surge pricing practices; attorney fees; and any additional relief deemed appropriate by the court.
Representing Ceresa Cohran is attorney Matthew R. Custardo from Custardo Law LLC based in Lisle, Illinois. The case has been filed under Case ID: 1:24-cv-11917.