Underwood v. Lastrada Entertainment Company, Ltd. et al.

Filing 117

ORDER terminating 116 Letter Motion to Seal. Accordingly, it is hereby ORDERED that Defendants shall re-submit their request to file the Warner Music Group documents under seal. The request shall be made in a manner that is compliant with the Southern District of New York ECF Rules and Instructions and this Court's Individual Practices. The request shall also include proposed findings that support the request. SO ORDERED. (Signed by Judge Denise L. Cote on 3/4/2021) (jca)

Case 1:16-cv-09058-DLC Document 117 Filed 03/04/21 Page 1 of 3

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK
-------------------------------------- X
:
WILLIAM R. UNDERWOOD,
:
:
Plaintiff,
:
:
-v:
:
LASTRADA ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY, LTD., :
:
STEVE ARRINGTON, SAM CARTER, CHARLES
:
CARTER, WAUNG HANKERSON, and ROGER
PARKER,
:
:
Defendants.
:
:
-------------------------------------- X

16cv9058 (DLC)
ORDER

DENISE COTE, District Judge:
On March 4, 2021, Defendants Lastrada Entertainment
Company, Charles Carter, and Sam Carter (“Defendants”) filed on
ECF a request to file certain documents produced by non-party
Warner Music Group under seal in conjunction with a forthcoming
motion for summary judgment.

In their request, Defendants noted

that the Warner Music Group documents were designated
“Confidential” under the protective order in this action.
Defendants also submitted the request to these Chambers via
email.
The First Amendment accords a strong presumption of public
access to pleadings and other judicial documents that “have
historically been open to the press and general public” and
“play[ ] a significant positive role in the functioning of the

Case 1:16-cv-09058-DLC Document 117 Filed 03/04/21 Page 2 of 3

particular process.”

Bernstein v. Bernstein Litowitz Berger &

Grossmann LLP, 814 F.3d 132, 141 (2d Cir. 2016).

See also

Lugosch v. Pyramid Co. of Onondaga, 435 F.3d 110, 124 (2d Cir.
2006).

The Second Circuit has held that this presumption of

public access applies to “summary judgment motions and documents
relied upon in adjudicating them.”

Newsday LLC v. County of

Nassau, 730 F.3d 156, 164 (2d Cir. 2013) (citation omitted).
The First Amendment “requires a court to make specific, rigorous
findings before sealing the document or otherwise denying public
access.”

Bernstein, 814 F.3d at 141 (citation omitted).

“[T]he

presumptive right of access prevails unless it is overcome by
specific, on-the-record findings that sealing is necessary to
preserve higher values and only if the sealing order is narrowly
tailored to achieve that aim.”
(citation omitted).

Newsday, 730 F.3d at 165

Accordingly, when making requests to redact

or seal material, a party must include in a publicly filed
letter any proposed findings that support the request.

A

document may not be sealed or redacted simply because it
contains material that is captured by a confidentiality
agreement, although that may be a relevant fact to mention in
the application.
Additionally, any request to seal or redact a filing must
be made in a manner that complies with the Southern District of
2

Case 1:16-cv-09058-DLC Document 117 Filed 03/04/21 Page 3 of 3

New York's ECF Rules and Instructions, section 6, as well as
this Court’s Individual Practices in Civil Cases, section 8.
Where a party seeks permission to file a document under seal,
the proposed sealed document must be contemporaneously filed
under seal on ECF and electronically related to the motion to
seal.

Accordingly, it is hereby

ORDERED that Defendants shall re-submit their request to
file the Warner Music Group documents under seal.

The request

shall be made in a manner that is compliant with the Southern
District of New York ECF Rules and Instructions and this Court’s
Individual Practices.

The request shall also include proposed

findings that support the request.
SO ORDERED:
Dated:

New York, New York
March 4, 2021
__________________________________
DENISE COTE
United States District Judge

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