Opinion
22-cv-02983-HSG
09-25-2023
THUY BICH TRAN, et al., Plaintiffs, v. ALEJANDRO MAYORKAS, et al., Defendants.
ORDER GRANTING PARTIES' STIPULATED MOTION TO FILE ADMINISTRATIVE RECORDS UNDER SEAL RE: DKT. NO. 23
HAYWOOD S. GILLIAM, JR. UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
Pending before the Court is Plaintiffs' administrative motion to seal. Dkt. No. 23. For the reasons detailed below, the Court GRANTS the motion.
I. LEGAL STANDARD
Courts generally apply a “compelling reasons” standard when considering motions to seal documents. Pintos v. Pac. Creditors Ass'n, 605 F.3d 665, 678 (9th Cir. 2010) (quoting Kamakana v. City & Cty. of Honolulu, 447 F.3d 1172, 1178 (9th Cir. 2006)). “This standard derives from the common law right ‘to inspect and copy public records and documents, including judicial records and documents.'” Id. (quoting Kamakana, 447 F.3d at 1178). “[A] strong presumption in favor of access is the starting point.” Kamakana, 447 F.3d at 1178 (quotations omitted). To overcome this strong presumption, the party seeking to seal a judicial record attached to a dispositive motion must “articulate compelling reasons supported by specific factual findings that outweigh the general history of access and the public policies favoring disclosure, such as the public interest in understanding the judicial process” and “significant public events.” Id. at 1178-79 (quotations omitted). “In general, ‘compelling reasons' sufficient to outweigh the public's interest in disclosure and justify sealing court records exist when such ‘court files might have become a vehicle for improper purposes,' such as the use of records to gratify private spite, promote public scandal, circulate libelous statements, or release trade secrets.” Id. at 1179 (quoting Nixon v. Warner Commc'ns, Inc., 435 U.S. 589, 598 (1978)). “The mere fact that the production of records may lead to a litigant's embarrassment, incrimination, or exposure to further litigation will not, without more, compel the court to seal its records.” Id.
The Court must “balance[] the competing interests of the public and the party who seeks to keep certain judicial records secret. After considering these interests, if the court decides to seal certain judicial records, it must base its decision on a compelling reason and articulate the factual basis for its ruling, without relying on hypothesis or conjecture.” Id. Civil Local Rule 79-5 supplements the compelling reasons standard set forth in Kamakana: the party seeking to file a document or portions of it under seal “must explore all reasonable alternatives to filing documents under seal, minimize the number of documents filed under seal, and avoid wherever possible sealing entire documents ....” Civil L.R. 79-5(a). The party must further explain the interests that warrant sealing, the injury that will result if sealing is declined, and why a less restrictive alternative to sealing is not sufficient. See Civil L.R. 79-5(c).
Records attached to nondispositive motions must meet the lower “good cause” standard of Rule 26(c) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, as such records “are often unrelated, or only tangentially related, to the underlying cause of action.” See Kamakana, 447 F.3d at 1179-80 (quotations omitted). This requires a “particularized showing” that “specific prejudice or harm will result” if the information is disclosed. Phillips ex rel. Estates of Byrd v. Gen. Motors Corp., 307 F.3d 1206, 1210-11 (9th Cir. 2002); see also Fed.R.Civ.P. 26(c). “Broad allegations of harm, unsubstantiated by specific examples of articulated reasoning” will not suffice. Beckman Indus., Inc. v. Int'l Ins. Co., 966 F.2d 470, 476 (9th Cir. 1992) (quotation omitted).
II. DISCUSSION
Defendant's filings of administrative records are more than tangentially related to the underlying cause of action, so the Court applies the “compelling reasons” standard.
The current sealing request, to which both parties have jointly stipulated, seeks to seal the U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services administrative records for three individuals - Thanh Huu Ngoc Dang, Anh Ngoc Nhu Dang, and Khang Thanh Dang. See Dkt. No. 23 at 1-2. These sensitive records include “banking statements, credit card bills, insurance papers, tax filings, and immigration filings[,]” and so contain “social security numbers, dates of birth, checking account information, credit card numbers, and other sensitive personal financial data.” Dkt. No. 23 at 3.
The Court did not rely on any of the documents that are the subject of Defendant's administrative motion to seal, given that the parties stipulated to dismissal before the Court. See Dkt. No. 27. Thus, these documents are unrelated to the public's understanding of the judicial proceedings in this case, and the public's interest in disclosure of these documents is minimal given that the Court did not have occasion to rule on any motions related to them before the parties stipulated to dismissal. See In re iPhone Application Litig., No. 11-MD-02250-LHK, 2013 WL 12335013, at *2 (N.D. Cal. Nov. 25, 2013) (“The public's interest in accessing these documents is even further diminished in light of the fact that the Court will not have occasion to rule on [the relevant motion].”). Accordingly, because the documents divulge confidential personal and financial information unrelated to the public's understanding of the judicial proceedings in this action, the Court finds that there is compelling reason to file the documents under seal. See Economus v. City & Cty. of San Francisco, No. 18-CV-01071-HSG, 2019 WL 1483804, at *9 (N.D. Cal. Apr. 3, 2019) (finding compelling reason to seal because the sealing request divulges sensitive information no longer related to the case); In re iPhone, 2013 WL 12335013 (same); Doe v. City of San Diego, No. 12-CV-689-MMA-DHB, 2014 WL 1921742, at *4 (S.D. Cal. May 14, 2014) (exhibit's disclosure of personal information and irrelevance to the matter are compelling reasons to seal the exhibit).
III. CONCLUSION
The Court GRANTS Defendant's administrative motion to file under seal. Pursuant to Civil Local Rule 79-5(g)(1), documents filed under seal as to which the administrative motion is granted will remain under seal.
IT IS SO ORDERED.