Uber death case resolved
Family, self-driving car company find agreement
The law firm representing the surviving family of a pedestrian hit and killed by a self-driving Uber car this month in Tempe says the case is resolved.
The Glendale law firm representing the surviving family of a woman hit and killed by a self-driving car in Tempe said Thursday the case is “resolved.”
The law firm Bellah Perez announced shortly after the March 18 accident it would represent the daughter of Elaine Herzberg, who was killed while jaywalking across Mill Avenue in the dark.
A receptionist at the firm would only read a statement Thursday saying the case was resolved and would not comment further.
Uber declined to comment Thursday. It pulled its approximately 94 test vehicles off the roads after the accident, and Gov. Doug Ducey since has ordered them to stay off Arizona roads.
The resolution to a potential liability case in the accident comes before the National Transportation Safety Board and Tempe police have concluded their investigation into how a car equipped with radar and other high-tech sensors, and a backup driver, failed to brake or steer away from Herzberg.
James Arrowood, an expert in motorvehicle and product-liability issues who teaches the State Bar of Arizona course on driverless cars, said a payout of $1 million to $3 million would be reasonable in such a case, with attorneys taking from 25 to 33 percent of that.
Arrowood was not involved in the case and has no inside knowledge of the agreement that Uber and the victim’s family are keeping confidential.
However, he said attorneys use standard formulas to calculate payments in liability cases.
The Uber attorneys might have assumed they had no liability because Herzberg was crossing outside of a crosswalk, but they also would have to consider the cost of defending the case in court, Arrowood said.
“This is a case of first impression,” he said. “You would need a number of experts who will absolutely jack up their fees on this. Every one will be $50,000 to $100,000.”
The family had an incentive to accept a payout early as well, he said, because the attorneys representing them would face similar expenses with hiring experts.
Arrowood also said that the video released by police hurt both sides because while the backup driver appeared distracted, the victim also did not appear to acknowledge the vehicle coming toward her.
Bellah Perez officials on Thursday were adamant about using the term “resolved” rather than “settled,” which Arrowood said was intentional to avoid the appearance that anyone admitted liability in the case.