Goulette v. Kalinski

Filing 88

ORDER granting Deft's 85 Motion to Seal, and the medical records filed at Docket No. 78-4 through Docket No. 78-46 shall remain under seal until further Order of the Court. Signed by Chief Judge Martin Reidinger on 9/08/2020. (Pro se litigant served by US Mail.) (ejb)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
WESTERN DISTRICT OF NORTH CAROLINA
STATESVILLE DIVISION
CIVIL CASE NO. 5:18-cv-00047-MR

ARTHUR JAY GOULETTE,

)
)
Plaintiff,
)
)
vs.
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MARTA KALINSKI,
)
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Defendant.
)
_______________________________ )

ORDER

THIS MATTER is before the Court on the Defendant’s Motion to Seal.
[Doc. 85].
The Defendant, through counsel, moves the Court pursuant to Local
Civil Rules 6.1(c) and 49.1.1 to seal medical records attached as Exhibits 4
through 46 to the Declaration of Marta Kalinski, M.D., submitted in support
of Defendant’s motion for summary judgment. [Doc. 85; see Docs. 78-4 to
78-46]. For grounds, counsel states that Plaintiff’s medical treatment is
directly at issue in this case and that Plaintiff’s medical records “contain
information pertaining to Plaintiff’s medical condition, diagnoses and
complaints and such information is protected health information.” [Doc. 85
at 1]. Furthermore, Defendant states that “there is no alternative to establish

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the necessary facts or to present the information without its placement under
seal.” [Id.].
Before sealing a court document, the Court must “(1) provide public
notice of the request to seal and allow interested parties a reasonable
opportunity to object, (2) consider less drastic alternatives to sealing the
documents, and (3) provide specific reasons and factual findings supporting
its decision to seal the documents and for rejecting the alternatives.”
Ashcraft v. Conoco, Inc., 218 F.3d 288, 302 (4th Cir. 2000). In the present
case, the public has been provided with adequate notice and an opportunity
to object to the Defendant’s motion. The Defendant filed his motion of
December August 24, 2020, and it has been accessible through the Court’s
electronic case filing system since that time. Further, the Defendant has
demonstrated that the subject medical records contains sensitive information
concerning the Plaintiff and that the public’s right of access to such
information is substantially outweighed by the Plaintiff’s competing interest
in protecting the details of such information. Finally, having considered less
drastic alternatives to sealing the document, the Court concludes that sealing
the medical records is necessary to protect the Plaintiff’s privacy interests.
Accordingly, the Defendant’s Motion to Seal will be granted, and the
medical records filed at Docs. 78-4 through 78-46 shall remain under seal.
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ORDER
IT IS, THEREFORE, ORDERED that Defendant’s Motion to Seal [Doc.
85] is GRANTED, and the medical records filed at Docket No. 78-4 through
Docket No. 78-46 shall remain under seal until further Order of the Court.
IT IS SO ORDERED.

Signed: September 8, 2020

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