04:32 PM EDT, 03/10/2025 (MT Newswires) -- Uber Technologies' ( UBER ) attempt to stop the consolidation of sexual assault lawsuits by its customers from individual cases was rejected Monday by a federal appeals court in San Francisco on Monday.

A three-judge panel for the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit turned down Uber's ( UBER ) argument that the terms of use agreement for the company's app prohibits riders from taking part in "coordinated" or "consolidated" legal actions against the company.

The US Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation last year consolidated nearly 80 pending actions filed by Uber ( UBER ) passengers in 13 judicial districts seeking compensation after alleging they were assaulted or harassed sexually by an Uber ( UBER ) driver, contending the company did not do enough to protect them.

The company challenged the decision to consolidate the cases, but the appeals court said the panel acted within its statutory authority by combining the lawsuits despite the user agreement prohibition.

Uber ( UBER ) did not immediately respond to a request from MT Newswires seeking comment.