Attorneys for Uber said the ride-sharing company was not liable for the New Year's Eve death of 6-year-old Sofia Liu in San Francisco, because the driver was an independent contractor and had no reason to be actively engaged with the app at the time.

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Uber's response, filed Thursday, said Muzaffar was "never an employee, agent, joint venture or partner of Uber." Attorneys said he had, however, passed a background check. Moreover, they said he had not been carrying a fare, heading to pick up a fare or responding to a request to pick up a fare - and thus had no reason to be interacting with his smartphone.

"The only information displayed on the screen was a GPS-generated map with his location - akin to the information displayed by a smartphone map application," lawyers wrote.

Uber's attorneys also claimed that Uber should not be held responsible because the company primarily provides services and not products.

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