Strike 3 Holdings, LLC v. John Doe subscriber assigned IP address 99.45.175.11 ( 2024 )

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 8 NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 9 STRIKE 3 HOLDINGS, LLC, 10 Case No. 23-cv-04339-RS Plaintiff, 11 v. ORDER GRANTING EX PARTE 12 APPLICATION FOR LEAVE TO FILE JOHN DOE SUBSCRIBER ASSIGNED IP DOCUMENTS UNDER SEAL 13 ADDRESS 99.45.175.11, 14 Defendant. 15 Plaintiff Strike 3 Holdings, Inc. seeks to file unredacted versions of the First Amended 16 Complaint, proposed summons, and return of service (see Dkt. 14) under seal because these 17 documents contain Defendant’s name, address, and other potentially identifying information. This 18 request accords with the previously issued directive in this case that Strike 3 not publicly disclose 19 such information without leave of the Court, or at least until the Doe defendant has had an 20 opportunity to file a motion to proceed anonymously or further discovery has been taken. For the 21 benefit of the Defendant who may receive this Order, concerns have been raised about Strike 3’s 22 use of these lawsuits. 23 There is a strong presumption of public access to court filings. To overcome the 24 presumption in favor of public access to a judicial record, there generally must be “compelling 25 reasons supported by specific factual findings.” Kamakana v. City & Cty. of Honolulu, 447 F.3d 26 1172, 1178 (9th Cir. 2006). Where a litigant presents compelling reasons to seal material, the court 27 must then balance the interests of the public and the party seeking sealing. Ctr. for Auto Safety v. 1 In cases like this one, courts have permitted filing the documents at issue under seal. See, 2 || e.g., Strike 3 Holdings, LLC v. Doe, No. 22-cv-133, 2022 WL 1493398, at *2 (S.D. Cal. Apr. 14, 3 2022). The volume of information subject to sealing here is small and largely limited to 4 || identifying information about the Defendant. This weighs in favor of granting the sealing request. 5 || The public is able to access nearly all other information about this case in the redacted versions of 6 || these documents already filed on the docket. For these reasons, the request to file unredacted 7 || versions of Strike 3’s First Amended Complaint, proposed summons, and return of service under 8 seal is granted. The Clerk is directed to file these documents (ECF No. 14) under seal. 9 10 || ITISSO ORDERED. 11 q 12 Dated: February 15, 2024 RICHARD SEEBORG 14 Chief United States District Judge 16 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 ORDER GRANTING EX PARTE APPLICATION CASE No. 23-cv-04339-RS