SACRAMENTO, California — Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a last-minute legislative deal between ride-hailing giant Uber and California trial attorneys on Thursday, officially averting a costly ballot measure showdown between the two sides, according to representatives from both camps.

The agreement, outlined in SB 623, imposes new safety measures on ride-hailing companies, as well as stricter limitations on medical lien practices that Uber blames for artificially inflating car crash lawsuit payouts and cannibalizing victims’ settlements. It does not place hard limits on attorneys’ ability to collect fees in car crash lawsuits, as Uber initially proposed in its ballot measure.

Newsom’s signature ensures both Uber and the trial lawyers’ lobby Consumer Attorneys of California will remove their dueling initiatives from the November ballot, as the parties agreed last Thursday. It follows a months-long TV advertising war between the two groups that has exceeded $50 million in combined spending.

The governor’s office did not respond for comment.

Supporters of the deal say it will prevent private equity firms from profiting off medical debt at the expense of car crash victims.

“Liens are getting sold to folks on Wall Street,” Assemblymember Diane Papan (D-San Mateo), who co-authored SB 623 with state Sen. Tom Umberg (D-Santa Ana), said on the Assembly floor Thursday. “This is to keep Wall Street out of the lien world.”

In exchange, Uber agreed to enhanced driver background checks and other safety standards that trial attorneys say will help prevent sexual assault and other types of misconduct. Those proposals were outlined in the Consumer Attorneys ballot measure.

Attorneys’ agreement with Uber could become a blueprint for resolving similar fights over car crash liability in other states, like New York and Georgia. Uber is determined to curb certain personal injury legal practices that the company argues are spiking payouts. But attorneys are pushing back, insisting that the company’s desired reforms will make it exceedingly difficult for victims to file cases.

The state Assembly and Senate overwhelmingly passed the bill earlier on Thursday to meet the deadline for removing initiatives from the November ballot.
 

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