Hawkins v. The Kroger Company

Filing 304

ORDER on Motion to Seal 288 . Signed by Judge Jeffrey T. Miller on 12/10/2020. (anh)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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SHAVONDA HAWKINS, on behalf of
herself and all others similarly situated,

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ORDER ON MOTION TO SEAL

Plaintiff,

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Case No.: 15cv2320 JM(AHG)

v.
THE KROGER COMPANY,
Defendant.

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On December 4, 2020, Plaintiff filed a motion to file an unredacted version of the

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Declaration of Gregory S. Weston in support of Plaintiff’s Opposition to Kroger’s Motion

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for Judgment (“Weston Declaration”) along with several attached exhibits under seal

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because it contains a document designated by Kroger as “confidential.” (Doc. No. 288.)

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In support of the motion, Plaintiff contends that although it is her view that there is

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nothing in the documents that qualifies for sealing, Defendant is requesting the documents

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be sealed as they contain information designated by Kroger as “confidential.” The

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document Kroger has designated as confidential is a product specification sheet for Kroger

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Breadcrumbs dated March 13, 2015. Plaintiff asserts that: “Kroger contends this document

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is properly sealed because it contains sensitive competitive business information.” (Doc.

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No. 288-1 at 2.)

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15cv2320 JM(AHG)

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Once protected discovery documents are made part of a dispositive motion, “they

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lose their status of being raw fruits of discovery” and no longer enjoy protected status

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without some overriding interests in favor of keeping the material confidential. Foltz v.

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State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co. 331 F.3d 1122, 1136 (9th Cir. 2003). Having reviewed the

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exhibit in question, the court does not find compelling reasons to file the product

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specification sheet under seal on the broad ground set forth.

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Accordingly, the court DENIES Plaintiff’s motion to seal. Having found no

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compelling reason exists to seal the documents, Plaintiff shall publicly file the document

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lodged under seal at Docket Number 289 forthwith.

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IT IS SO ORDERED.

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Dated: December 10, 2020

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15cv2320 JM(AHG)