Neymatov et al v. Blinken et al

Filing 6

ORDER Re: Plaintiff M.N.'s Request to Proceed Under Pseudonym signed by Magistrate Judge Christopher D. Baker on 08/30/2024. (Boren, Cori)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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ZAFAR NEYMATOV, et al.,

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Plaintiff,
v.
ANTHONY J. BLINKEN, et al.,
Defendants.

Case No. 1:24-cv-01016-CDB
ORDER RE: PLAINTIFF M.N.’S REQUEST
TO PROCEED UNDER PSEUDONYM
(Doc. 1)
14-Day Deadline

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On August 27, 2024, Plaintiffs Zafar Neymatov, Alia Sanatulova, Aleksandr Komarov,

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and M.N. (“Plaintiffs”) initiated this action to this Court. (Doc. 1). The complaint identifies

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Plaintiff M.N. as the “minor child” of Plaintiffs Zafar Neymatov and Alia Sanatulova. Id. at ¶ 5.

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It is well established that minors may proceed in a suit anonymously. Fed. R. Civ. P. 5.2(a).

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However, the complaint indicates that Plaintiff M.N. will reach the age of 21 in 2025. (Doc. 1 at

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¶ 20). Thus, Plaintiff M.N. is not a “minor child.”

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“[M]any federal courts, including the Ninth Circuit, have permitted parties to proceed

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anonymously when special circumstances justify secrecy.” Does I thru XXIII v. Advanced Textile

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Corp., 214 F.3d 1058, 1067 (9th Cir. 2000). “In this circuit,…parties [may] use pseudonyms in

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the ‘unusual case’ when nondisclosure of the party’s identify ‘is necessary…to protect a person

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from harassment, injury, ridicule or personal embarrassment.’” Id. at 1067-68 (quoting United

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States v. Doe, 655 F.2d 920, 922 n.1 (9th Cir. 1981)). “[A] district court must balance the need
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for anonymity against the general presumption that parties’ identities are public information and

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the risk of unfairness to the opposing party.” Id. at 1068.

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The Ninth Circuit has identified three situations in which parties have been allowed to

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proceed under pseudonyms: “(1) when the identification creates a risk of retaliatory physical or

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mental harm; (2) when anonymity is necessary to preserve privacy in a matter of sensitive and

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highly personal nature; and (3) when the anonymous party is compelled to admit [his or her]

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intention to engage in illegal conduct, thereby risking criminal prosecution…” Id. (citations and

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internal quotations marks omitted). A party requesting to proceed pseudonymously has the

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burden of showing that their "need for anonymity outweighs prejudice to the opposing party and

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the public's interest in knowing the party’s identity.” Id. at 1068-69.
Accordingly, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that on or before September 13, 2024, Plaintiffs

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shall either (1) file a motion for Plaintiff M.N. to proceed pseudonymously in this action, or (2)

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file a first amended complaint identifying Plaintiff M.N. by full name.

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IT IS SO ORDERED.

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Dated:

August 30, 2024

___________________

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UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

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