Inside a recent Lyft lawsuit

Find out what it's like to work in the gig economy

If you’re thinking about being a gig worker—for example, an Airbnb host, Lyft driver, or DoorDash delivery person—keep this article in mind before you start. This article outlines particular concepts prospective gig workers should think about before signing up for gig work, such as upfront costs and budgeting for taxes.

The number of people collecting money from gig work tripled between 2017 and 2021

That includes people driving for Lyft or delivering food through GrubHub. Those people might be changing the face of the US economy at large, too. Gig work provides a cushion between jobs outside of government unemployment assistance, for example.

Driving forces behind pay transparency laws

Since 2018, pay transparency laws have been enacted in more than a few states and cities across the US. But what’s driving the trend, from a legal perspective? This law review article attempts to answer that question, citing factors such as the Great Recession and the gender pay gap—click here to learn more.

As of 2025, Waymo has rolled out "robotaxi" services in five US cities

The company has been under investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration following dozens of crashes and incidents that appear to show Waymo vehicles violating traffic laws over the past decade in Phoenix, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Atlanta, and Austin.

Explore the 2025 Uber lost & found index

A chainsaw. Ten live lobsters. A mannequin head with human hair. These are just a few curious items passengers left behind in Ubers this year, according to Uber itself. Uber is among the largest gig economy platforms in the US, with a valuation of roughly $150B as of 2024.

62% of independent workers said they would prefer permanent or non-contract work

In the consulting firm McKinsey’s 2022 “American Opportunity Survey,” 36% of employed respondents (about 58 million Americans) classified themselves as “independent workers.” But they’re not all thrilled about their current professional status.

Opioid epidemic 101: lawsuits and settlements

State and local governments trying to address the opioid epidemic have sued organizations they believe started and supported the crisis. Companies that made, distributed, or contributed to sales of the highly addictive painkillers are expected to pay more than $50B in settlements. These settlements specifically state that at least 85% of settlement funds must be spent on addressing the epidemic, though where exactly the money is going is unclear.

27 states have right-to-work laws

That means employees in those states can choose whether or not to join a union at their workplace. Right-to-work laws also make it optional for employees in unionized workplaces to pay fees associated with union membership.

Journalists are increasingly unionizing

The LA Times was a famously anti-union paper—until its owner sought to cut costs by consolidating positions across its portfolio. This paper isn’t alone. Over the past few years, as the news business struggled, many publications kicked their unionizing efforts up a notch.

44 states in the US have implemented ride safety laws

Rides are developed and tested for years before they host passengers. Maintenance teams perform various tests every day before opening coasters to the public. The chances of risk are rare, as exemplified in 2019 when amusement parks saw .8 injuries per million rides.

WeWork’s S-1 was full of alarming financial and business information that concerned investors and the public

When WeWork’s S-1 came out, investors were particularly concerned about WeWork’s expenses far outpacing its growing revenue and its complex company structure, as well as a few potential conflicts of interest within the company.

What is a lien?

A lien is a legal claim or right to someone else's property, such as a home. For instance, if someone wins a lawsuit against you and they can’t immediately collect the money you owe them, they might have the right to file a lien against your property.

Hip-hop lyrics are often used in criminal trials, blurring the line between art and evidence

Song lyrics from other genres are rarely used by prosecutors, but it's commonplace for hip-hop and rap. Legal scholars and rap artists say that's a problem, and that it fundamentally misunderstands the music by interpreting artistic expression as absolute fact.

Dual-class stock structures separate equity and decision-making authority

In the past few decades, dual-class stock structures have become an increasingly popular way for companies to raise capital in public markets without allocating traditional shareholder voting rights. Meta, Estée Lauder, and The New York Times are companies that are famously dual-class.

Bumble Founder Whitney Wolfe Herd sued Tinder for sexual discrimination and harassment

Wolfe Herd, who cofounded Tinder and was its VP of marketing, left the company in April 2014 after dating a Tinder cofounder who became "verbally controlling and abusive." In September of that year, she received a more than $1M settlement from her lawsuit against the company.

In 2018, the Supreme Court sided with American Express in a case that significantly changed antitrust regulation.

The US Department of Justice sued Visa, Mastercard, and American Express in 2010 over alleged anticompetitive contracts with merchants. While Visa and Mastercard settled out of court, American Express went to trial and had its case taken all the way up to the Supreme Court—which ruled that both sides of a transaction business must be analyzed to determine a monopoly.

Debunking myths about weight loss drugs

Business Insider delves into the research on GLP-1 to highlight the good and bad aspects other stories overlook. Few make it clear that GLP-1 drugs simply don’t work for many people. This deep dive raises a number of questions about the future of GLP-1 and how they will be used.

K-pop idols have reduced rights due to their contracts

In 2024, the South Korean government ruled that celebrities are not entitled to the same rights as workers. This decision was made in response to the band NewJeans, whose members raised concerns about workplace harassment. The South Korean labor ministry instead found that the content of their contracts indicates that they do not hold the same legal status as other workers in the country. The dispute highlights the ongoing debate about the entertainment industry's treatment of idols.

Some argue that advance payday apps aren't markedly different from payday loans

Some apps, like EarnIn, allow users to get money from their paycheck in advance. These apps access users' banking information, allowing the company to immediately take back any borrowed money and track users' financial situations to evaluate their risk. Unlike traditional payday lenders, these apps often waive the right to sue users who don't pay back the initial principal and don't charge interest, but rather ask users for a tip. (Some users may experience a paywall.)

New York Times Co. v. Sullivan transformed libel law and the relationship between the press and public officials

The 1964 case arose when an Alabama official sued The New York Times over a civil rights advertisement he claimed was defamatory. The ruling makes it very difficult for public officials to win libel suits against the press unless they can prove deliberate falsehood.

Prediction markets convinced regulators they're not gambling, but exchanging commodity futures contracts

Kalshi built a legal case that argues its yes/no bets on real-world events are futures contracts, and the relevant regulator—the Commodity Futures Trading Commission—agreed in 2020. Many states are now suing major prediction markets, arguing this legal case is faulty and obscures the true substance of the business: gambling.

Domino's Pizza's 30-minute delivery guarantee was responsible for the chain's 1980s surge, but it was discontinued after the company was found liable for delivery driver accidents.

Peloton's success is partly due to users' relationships with instructors

Despite Peloton's online model, most users feel a deep connection with the instructors and have created community groups around their shared identities (like being a mom or a lawyer). The relationship users have with their instructors has fueled consistent engagement and paved the way for instructors to take on personal brand deals. (Some users may experience a paywall.)

The Beatles sued Apple in 1978 to defend naming rights to their record label

The band created their own record label, Apple Corps, after their manager died in 1967, while the technology company chose the name "Apple" to appear before the video game company Atari in directories. Subsequent lawsuits were not settled until 2007.

Public transit has been a front line of civil rights battles for over a century

Public transit was among the most contested terrain in the fight for racial equality in America, because it was where Black Americans and white Americans were unavoidably forced to share public space.

Federal juries are selected from voter rolls and driver's license lists

Courts randomly draw prospective jurors from these sources, then mail qualification questionnaires. Those who qualify may be summoned for voir dire, where judges and attorneys question candidates before seating a final jury.

A Yale student wrote a profound essay about the consulting industry's influence on elite college students that was published in a book of her writing after she died in a post-graduation car accident.

The price of gas is a composite made up of several different factors, with the federal gas tax making up less than 20% of what drivers pay at the pump.

Fast-casual restaurant Chili's is experiencing a resurgence, with its parent company recently reporting a nearly 32% increase in sales, thanks to passionate Gen Z fans on TikTok.

Telehealth demand for GLP-1s for weight loss is booming as consumers seek easier access.

Learn how to read a prospectus, the juicy document that any company must file with the SEC before going public.

How Amazon operates a 'flywheel' business model, a self-reinforcing cycle that drives continuous growth

After her fellow cult members tried to kill her with an LSD-infused hamburger, one member of the Manson Family, the murderous cult led by Charles Manson, decided to testify against the group's leader.

In 2025, four executives from large tech companies were given positions in the US Army Reserves—including Palantir Chief Technology Officer Shyam Sankar, which reinforced Palantir's ties with the US military and its role as a leading defense partner.

Gerrymandering works through two techniques: cracking opposing voters across districts to dilute their power, and packing them into a few to waste their votes in lopsided majorities.

A 2019 Facebook event called on attendees to "Storm Area 51, They Can't Stop All of Us," resulting in countless memes, the creation of a music festival, and eventually the arrests of those who did try to approach the area.

Firework or sparkler burns, even if they cover a relatively small area of skin, can significantly affect our range of motion.

Researchers believe the brain consolidates memories, processes emotions, and plans for the future during dream states

When you complete a CAPTCHA on a website to prove you are human, you may be unknowingly training algorithms for self-driving cars, whose systems require training data to help identify crosswalks, bicycles, and other outdoor objects.

Dozens of S&P 500 stocks, including Coca-Cola and Walmart—known as the dividend aristocrats—have increased dividends every year for 25 years

Long before Major League Baseball began allowing instant replay for balls and strikes, an umpire reluctantly used the technology to determine whether a hit was a home run, a move that inadvertently ushered in a new era for the sport.

Budweiser stores yeast derived from the original 1800s strain in a secret bunker, which only the Head of Yeast Management can access—not even the CEO

The Brothers Grimm were lawyers before they were storytellers, and became interested in fairy tales as they began investigating how rules and customs had been passed down through cultures.

Louisiana's 'Cancer Alley' is infamous for having some of the highest industrial pollution, toxic air emissions, and cancer risks in the US.

In 2009, the nation was gripped by the story of a missing young boy who was believed to be floating over Colorado in a homemade balloon, until it was revealed that he was at home the whole time.

Browse a detailed visual analysis of over 200,000 similes—comparisons that often use 'like' or 'as'—from popular fiction to see how frequently writers the same idiomatic expressions.

This real-time tracking of the hantavirus cruise ship outbreak in May 2026 offers a unique glimpse into the global reach of the outbreak and whether the virus sickened passengers and their communities around the world.

Mark Twain spent decades feuding with the US Postal Service, convinced its costs and regulations were bureaucratic overreach.

To reduce wrinkles in clothing, research recommends gentle wash cycles with more water and tumble drying with smaller loads and longer times.

The syncytiotrophoblast is the outer layer of the placenta and the largest human cell, spanning an area about twice that of a king-sized bedsheet.