Uber’s Duty to Protect Murdered Driver Debated at Ninth Circuit

A federal appeals court suggested the Washington Supreme Court should weigh in on whether Uber Technologies Inc. had a duty to protect its drivers from the foreseeable criminal acts of third parties.

Two judges on the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit raised the possibility during oral argument Tuesday in a case by the parents of a murdered Uber driver who are seeking to revive their wrongful death lawsuit against the ride-hail company.

Certifying that question would provide Washington state’s highest court the chance to consider the responsibility that companies owe to workers who pick up passengers, deliver ...