Guitron et al v. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. et al

Filing 124

ORDER by Judge Claudia Wilken GRANTING IN PART AND DENYING IN PART PLAINTIFFS 120 MOTION TO FILE UNDER SEAL. (ndr, COURT STAFF) (Filed on 1/18/2012)

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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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YESENIA GUITRON; and JUDI KLOSEK,

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Plaintiffs,
v.

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WELLS FARGO BANK, N.A.; WELLS
FARGO & CO.; PAM RUBIO; and DOES
1-20,

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ORDER GRANTING IN
PART AND DENYING
IN PART
PLAINTIFFS’ MOTION
TO FILE UNDER SEAL
(Docket No. 120)

Defendants.

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United States District Court
For the Northern District of California

No. C 10-3461 CW

________________________________/

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Plaintiffs Yesenia Guitron and Judi Klosek seek to file under

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seal certain exhibits submitted in support of their opposition to

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the motion for summary judgment filed by Defendants Wells Fargo

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Bank, N.A., Wells Fargo & Co. and Pam Rubio.

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Plaintiffs’ filings are connected to a dispositive motion.

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To establish that the documents are sealable, Plaintiffs “must
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overcome a strong presumption of access by showing that

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‘compelling reasons supported by specific factual findings . . .

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outweigh the general history of access and the public policies

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favoring disclosure.’”

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665, 679 (9th Cir. 2010) (citation omitted).

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established simply by showing that the document is subject to a

Pintos v. Pac. Creditors Ass’n, 605 F.3d
This cannot be

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protective order or by stating in general terms that the material
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is considered to be confidential, but rather must be supported by
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a sworn declaration demonstrating with particularity the need to

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file each document under seal.

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document has been designated as confidential by another party,

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that party must file a declaration establishing that the document

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is sealable within seven days of the filing of the motion to seal.

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Civil Local Rule 79-5(d).

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Civil Local Rule 79-5(a).

If a

In their motion, Plaintiffs state that the documents that

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they seek to file under seal fall into two categories: (1)
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Plaintiffs’ personnel files while working for Defendants,

United States District Court
For the Northern District of California

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including performance documents and personal identifying

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information for Plaintiffs; and (2) documents that contain

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sensitive and private information of third parties, including

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social security numbers, bank account numbers and financial

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information.

Plaintiffs argue that public disclosure of these

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documents would violate the right to privacy of Plaintiffs and the
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third parties.

In Plaintiffs’ supporting declaration, Plaintiffs

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identify a third category of documents, “Documents produced by

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Defendants in discovery that have been designated as

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‘confidential’ by Defendants according to the terms of the

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Parties’ Protective Order.”

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declaration, the majority of the exhibits that Plaintiffs seek to

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Peretz Decl. ¶ 3.

file under seal fall into this third category.

According to this

Id. at ¶¶ 4, 7.

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Based on the Court’s review of the exhibits and Plaintiffs’
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supporting declaration, the Court finds that Plaintiffs have

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provided compelling reasons supporting the sealing of the records

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that fall into Categories One and Two.
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Accordingly, Plaintiffs’

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motion is GRANTED to the extent that it applies to Exhibits 51,

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52, 56, 72-74, 172-175, 177-195 and 197-201.

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have not submitted a supporting declaration establishing that the

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exhibits that fall into the third category are sealable, even

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though more than seven days have elapsed since Plaintiffs filed

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However, Defendants

their motion to seal and supporting declaration.

Accordingly,

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Plaintiffs’ motion is DENIED to the extent that it seeks to submit
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United States District Court
For the Northern District of California

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these documents under seal (Docket No. 120).
Within three days of the date of this Order, Plaintiffs shall

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electronically file Exhibits 51, 52, 56, 72-74, 172-175, 177-195

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and 197-201 under seal, in accordance with General Order 62, and

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the remaining exhibits in the public record.

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IT IS SO ORDERED.

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Dated: 1/18/2012

CLAUDIA WILKEN
United States District Judge

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