Schneider et al v. Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc.
Filing
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ORDER by Judge Haywood S. Gilliam, Jr. ON ADMINISTRATIVE MOTION TO FILE UNDER SEAL (This order grants docket no. 181 ).(ndrS, COURT STAFF) (Filed on 2/20/2020)
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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
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NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
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MARTIN SCHNEIDER, et al.,
Plaintiffs,
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v.
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ORDER ON ADMINISTRATIVE
MOTION TO FILE UNDER SEAL
Re: Dkt. No. 181
CHIPOTLE MEXICAN GRILL, INC.,
Defendant.
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United States District Court
Northern District of California
Case No. 16-cv-02200-HSG
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Pending before the Court is Defendant’s administrative motion to file under seal
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documents in support of its motion to decertify the classes. The Court GRANTS Defendant’s
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motion for the reasons described below.
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I.
LEGAL STANDARD
Courts generally apply a “compelling reasons” standard when considering motions to seal
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documents. Pintos v. Pac. Creditors Ass’n, 605 F.3d 665, 678 (9th Cir. 2010) (quoting Kamakana
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v. City & Cty. of Honolulu, 447 F.3d 1172, 1178 (9th Cir. 2006)). “This standard derives from the
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common law right ‘to inspect and copy public records and documents, including judicial records
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and documents.’” Id. (quoting Kamakana, 447 F.3d at 1178). “[A] strong presumption in favor of
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access is the starting point.” Kamakana, 447 F.3d at 1178 (quotations omitted). To overcome this
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strong presumption, the party seeking to seal a judicial record attached to a dispositive motion
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must “articulate compelling reasons supported by specific factual findings that outweigh the
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general history of access and the public policies favoring disclosure, such as the public interest in
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understanding the judicial process” and “significant public events.” Id. at 1178–79 (quotations
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omitted). “In general, ‘compelling reasons’ sufficient to outweigh the public’s interest in
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disclosure and justify sealing court records exist when such ‘court files might have become a
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vehicle for improper purposes,’ such as the use of records to gratify private spite, promote public
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scandal, circulate libelous statements, or release trade secrets.” Id. at 1179 (quoting Nixon v.
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Warner Commc’ns, Inc., 435 U.S. 589, 598 (1978)). “The mere fact that the production of records
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may lead to a litigant’s embarrassment, incrimination, or exposure to further litigation will not,
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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
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keep certain judicial records secret. After considering these interests, if the court decides to seal
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certain judicial records, it must base its decision on a compelling reason and articulate the factual
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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
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United States District Court
Northern District of California
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document or portions of it under seal must “establish[] that the document, or portions thereof, are
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privileged, protectable as a trade secret or otherwise entitled to protection under the law . . . The
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request must be narrowly tailored to seek sealing only of sealable material.” Civil L.R. 79-5(b).
Records attached to nondispositive motions must meet the lower “good cause” standard of
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Rule 26(c) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, as such records “are often unrelated, or only
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tangentially related, to the underlying cause of action.” See Kamakana, 447 F.3d at 1179–80
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(quotations omitted). This requires a “particularized showing” that “specific prejudice or harm
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will result” if the information is disclosed. Phillips ex rel. Estates of Byrd v. Gen. Motors Corp.,
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307 F.3d 1206, 1210–11 (9th Cir. 2002); see also Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(c). “Broad allegations of
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harm, unsubstantiated by specific examples of articulated reasoning” will not suffice. Beckman
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Indus., Inc. v. Int’l Ins. Co., 966 F.2d 470, 476 (9th Cir. 1992) (quotation omitted).
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II.
DISCUSSION
Defendant’s filings in connection with its motion to decertify the classes are more than
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tangentially related to the underlying cause of action, so the Court applies the “compelling
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reasons” standard.
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The current sealing requests seek to seal information that contain confidential business and
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financial information relating to the operations of Defendant, including sensitive marketing
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information. Dkt. No. 181; Dkt. No. 181-1 at ¶¶ 3–15. The Court previously granted some of the
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sealing requests seeking to seal materially identical information. See Dkt. No. 134.
The Court did not rely on any of the documents that are the subject of Defendant’s
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administrative motion to seal, given that the parties filed a notice of settlement and joint
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stipulation to vacate all dates before the hearing on Defendant’s motion to decertify the classes.
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Dkt. Nos. 193, 195. Thus, these documents are unrelated to the public’s understanding of the
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judicial proceedings in this case, and the public’s interest in disclosure of these documents is
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minimal given that the Court will not rule on Defendant’s motion to decertify the classes. See In
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re iPhone Application Litig., No. 11-MD-02250-LHK, 2013 WL 12335013, at *2 (N.D. Cal. Nov.
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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 Plaintiffs’ Motion for Class
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United States District Court
Northern District of California
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Certification.”). Accordingly, because the documents divulge confidential business and financial
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information unrelated to the public’s understanding of the judicial proceedings in this action, the
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Court finds that there is compelling reason to file the documents under seal. See Economus v. City
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& Cty. of San Francisco, No. 18-CV-01071-HSG, 2019 WL 1483804, at *9 (N.D. Cal. Apr. 3,
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2019) (finding compelling reason to seal because the sealing request divulges sensitive
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information no longer related to the case); In re iPhone, 2013 WL 12335013 (same); Doe
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v. City of San Diego, No. 12-CV-689-MMA-DHB, 2014 WL 1921742, at *4 (S.D. Cal. May 14,
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2014) (exhibit’s disclosure of personal information and irrelevance to the matter are compelling
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reasons to seal the exhibit).
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III.
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CONCLUSION
The Court GRANTS Defendant’s administrative motion to file under seal. Pursuant to
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Civil Local Rule 79-5(f)(1), documents filed under seal as to which the administrative motion is
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granted will remain under seal.
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IT IS SO ORDERED.
Dated: 2/20/2020
______________________________________
HAYWOOD S. GILLIAM, JR.
United States District Judge
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