Adds FedEx comment in paragraph 7

By David Thomas

June 9 (Reuters) - A Philadelphia-based lawyer and his personal injury firm have filed counterclaims in a lawsuit brought by Uber Technologies UBER.N and FedEx Corp FDX.N, alleging the companies are abusing a federal anti-racketeering law in an effort to put him out of business.

Marc Simon and his firm Simon & Simon claimed in their filing on Monday in Philadelphia federal court that Uber and FedEx agreed to settle injury cases the firm brought in state court, while baselessly citing some of the same cases as evidence of a racketeering scheme in their federal lawsuit.

"Uber’s and FedEx’s picking and choosing of when cases are 'fraud' or not — or when cases are fraud in this court yet worthy of significant settlements in state court — is in and of itself evidence that this RICO action is objectively and subjectively baseless," the Simon firm said.

The companies sued Simon and his law firm last year, claiming they steered clients to a "network of corrupt medical providers" who ​exaggerate injuries and create false medical records in order to inflate the value of their lawsuits.

The counterclaims allege Uber and FedEx are trying to sink the law firm's business and "chill other personal injury firms from achieving the success that the Simon firm has had against Uber and FedEx."

Simon said he is seeking an unspecified amount of "substantial damages" from the companies, as well as a court order declaring the Uber and FedEx lawsuit to be "sham litigation."

An Uber spokesperson said in a statement that Simon's counterclaims "lack merit" and the company will move to dismiss them. A FedEx spokesperson said the company is "committed to protecting our customers and team members from fraudulent behavior."

Simon in a statement said that Uber's lawsuit was "never about fraud; it was about scaring lawyers out of suing Uber, and it won't work."

The lawsuit by Uber and FedEx asserts claims against Simon, his firm and other medical providers under the federal anti-racketeering law known as RICO, which was passed by Congress in 1970 to tackle organized crime.

Civil damages under RICO can be tripled — Uber and FedEx are seeking an unspecified amount of general and punitive damages. A federal judge last month denied Simon's motion to dismiss the lawsuit.

Uber and FedEx have mounted similar lawsuits against law firms in Los Angeles, Miami and New York alleging lawyers worked in conjunction with medical providers to file bogus and exaggerated claims against them.