The Sherwin-Williams Company v. Courtesy Oldsmobile-Cadillac, Inc., et al.

Filing 28

Order Regarding Request To Seal Documents ECF No. 27 Response by Plaintiffs Due Within Fourteen Days signed by Magistrate Judge Michael J. Seng on 12/14/2015. (Yu, L)

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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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1:15-cv-01137 MJS
SHERWIN WILLIAMS COMPANY,

ORDER REGARDING REQUEST TO SEAL
Plaintiff, DOCUMENTS

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(Doc. 27)

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v.

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COURTESY OLDSMOBILECADILLAC, INC.,

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RESPONSE BY PLAINTIFFS DUE WITHIN
FOURTEEN (14) DAYS

Defendant.

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I.

INTRODUCTION

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Before the Court is Plaintiff Sherwin Williams Company’s request to seal a supply

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agreement that it intends to use as an exhibit in a forthcoming motion. (See ECF No.

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27.)

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Plaintiff informs the Court that the supply agreement is confidential and contains

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trade secrets. However, Plaintiff provides no information upon which the Court can

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determine if the agreement is as characterized.

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As discussed below, Plaintiff has not made a sufficient showing to enable the

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Court grant the request to seal.

Accordingly, the Request will be denied without

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prejudice to Plaintiff filing a renewed request that complies with Local Rule 141 and
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provides "good cause" for sealing.

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II.

LEGAL STANDARD FOR SEALING DOCUMENTS

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Courts have long recognized a "general right to inspect and copy public records

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and documents, including judicial records and documents." Nixon v. Warner Commc'ns,

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Inc., 435 U.S. 589, 597 (1978) (denying release of the "Nixon tapes" that were played in

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open court and entered into evidence). "This right extends to pretrial documents filed in

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civil cases." Estate of Migliaccio v. Allianz Life Ins. Co. (In re Midlan Nat'l Life Ins. Co.

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Annuity Sales Practices Lit.), 686 F.3d 1115, 1119 (9th Cir. 2012) (per curiam). "Unless

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a particular court record is one 'traditionally kept secret,' a 'strong presumption in favor of

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access' is the starting point." Kamakana v. City and Cnty. of Honolulu, 447 F.3d 1172,

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1178 (9th Cir. 2006) (quoting Foltz v. State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co., 331 F.3d 1122,

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1135 (9th Cir. 2003)). In order to overcome this strong presumption, a party seeking to

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seal a judicial record must articulate justifications for sealing that outweigh the historical

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right of access and the public policies favoring disclosure. See id. at 1178-79.

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The Ninth Circuit has determined that the public's interest in non-dispositive

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motions is relatively lower than its interest in trial or a dispositive motion. Accordingly, a

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party seeking to seal a document attached to a non-dispositive motion need only

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demonstrate "good cause" to justify sealing. Pintos v. Pac. Creditors Ass'n, 605 F.3d

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665, 678 (9th Cir. 2010) (applying "good cause" standard to all non-dispositive motions

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because such motions "are often unrelated, or only tangentially related, to the underlying

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cause of action"). "The party seeking protection bears the burden of showing specific

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prejudice or harm will result if no [protection] is granted." Phillips v. Gen. Motors Corp.,

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307 F.3d 1206, 1210-11 (9th Cir. 2002). That party must make a "particularized showing

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of good cause with respect to any individual document." San Jose Mercury News, Inc. v.

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U.S. Dist. Court, N. Dist. (San Jose), 187 F.3d 1096, 1103 (9th Cir. 1999) (emphasis

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added). "Broad allegations of harm, unsubstantiated by specific examples or articulated

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reasoning" are insufficient. Beckman Indus., Inc. v. Int'l Ins. Co., 966 F.2d 470, 476 (9th

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Cir.) (quoting Cipollone v. Liggett Group, Inc., 785 F.2d 1108, 1121 (3rd Cir. 1986)), cert.
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denied, 506 U.S. 868, 113 S. Ct. 197, 121 L. Ed. 2d 140 (1992).

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III.

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ANALYSIS
The request to seal is improper under the standards articulated by the Ninth

Circuit..

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Plaintiff has provided nothing upon which to base a determination as to whether

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the document contains trade secrets, is confidential and should be sealed. “Conclusory

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arguments" and "blanket" assertions that documents are "confidential and proprietary"

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are insufficient to overcome the presumption against sealing. Ingram v. Pac. Gas & Elec.

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Co., 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 136887, 9-10 (N.D. Cal. Sept. 24, 2013) (citing Wells Fargo

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& Co. v. ABD Ins. & Fin. Servs., No. 12-cv-3856-PJH, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 32593,

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2013 WL 897914, at *2 (N.D. Cal. Mar. 8, 2013)). The Ninth Circuit, in an unpublished

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opinion, has identified a trade secret as "any formula, pattern, device or compilation of

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information which is used in one's business, and which gives him an opportunity to

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obtain an advantage over competitors who do not know or use it." In re Elec. Arts, Inc.,

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298 F. App'x 568, 569 (9th Cir. 2008) (quoting Restatement of Torts § 757, cmt. b). In

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that case, applying Kamakana and Nixon, the Ninth Circuit reversed a district court for

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refusing to seal information that qualified under this standard. In re Elec. Arts, Inc., 298

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Fed. App'x. at 569. On the other hand, information does not have value to a competitor

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merely because the competitor does not have access to it." Travelers Prop. Cas. Co. of

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Am. v. Centex Homes, No. 11-cv-3638-SC, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 26241, 2013 WL

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707918, at *1 (N.D. Cal. Feb. 26, 2013) (plaintiff-insurer's "Construction Defect Review

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Guidelines" were not sealable because plaintiff failed to make proper showing).

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In addition to addressing the “good cause” standard, Plaintiffs' request to seal

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must also meet the particularity required under Local Rule 141 and specifically address

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"the statutory or other authority for sealing, the requested duration, the identity, by name

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or category, of persons to be permitted access to the documents, and all other relevant

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information." Local Rule 141.

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IV.

ORDER

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Plaintiff's request to seal is hereby DENIED without prejudice. Plaintiff is

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ORDERED to file a renewed notice and request to seal documents complying with the

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requirements of Local Rule 141 within fourteen (14) days of the issuance of this order.

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IT IS SO ORDERED.
Dated:

December 14, 2015

/s/

Michael J. Seng

UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

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