A trove of documents leaked to The Guardian suggest that a period of rapid global expansion under co-founder and former CEOTravis Kalanick may have been a factor in the company's disobedience of local regulations.
Kalanick left the Phillip Burton Federal Building on the third day of the trial.
More than 124,000 internal documents from the company were leaked to The Guardian and shared with an international group of news outlets.
In internal communications, Uber staff openly acknowledged the company's "Other than legal status" in some of the countries it operated in.
Kalanick told employees to encourage drivers to stage a counter- protest in France despite warnings that it could put drivers at risk of attack. The strategy was used during protests in Italy, Belgium, Spain, Switzerland and the Netherlands, according to emails.
The "kill switch" was developed by the company to help protect the startup from law enforcement.
Kalanick told the company that he had brokered a secret deal in the French cabinet to help the company get a foothold in the French market.
The company courted close relations with other powerful European figures, attracted support from powerful individuals in Russia, Germany and Italy, and paid hundreds of thousands of dollars for research to back up its economic claims.
Kalanick never suggested that the company should take advantage of violence at the expense of driver safety, according to the statement. Over a hundred leaders in dozens of countries around the world and at all times under the direct oversight of Kalanick were responsible for the expansion initiatives. There are doubts about the authenticity of the documents. Forbes contacted Kalanick's investment fund.
The scandal surrounding sexual harassment and discrimination at the company led to Kalanick stepping down as CEO. The company said in a statement Sunday that it has invested heavily in safety since the CEO replaced Kalanick. We won't make excuses for past behavior that isn't in line with our values. We want the public to judge us by what we did over the last five years and what we will do in the future. Kalanick resigned from the board.
There are more reports into the files. More than 180 journalists at 40 media outlets were involved in the investigation, which was led by the Guardian.
The leak reveals that the company broke laws, tricked police, and secretly Lobbyed the government.
The massive leak reveals how top politicians aided and abetted the ride sharing service.
The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists shows how the company deceived investigators and used violence against its drivers.
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