Hazari v. County of Santa Clara
- Beth Freeman
- 5:19-cv-04392
- U.S. District Court · Northern District of California
- 3
In Hazari v. County of Santa Clara, Judge Freeman granted Cyrus Hazari’s request to keep health-information exhibits sealed.
Cyrus Hazari’s confidential health information and public access to the exhibits filed at ECF Nos. 90 and 92.
What happened
In Hazari v. County of Santa Clara, Cyrus Hazari asked to seal exhibits filed with his motion to set aside an order. The defendants did not respond.
The court found that the exhibits contained confidential health information and that the request was narrowly limited to that information. It therefore found sufficient reasons to keep the material from public view.
The court granted Hazari’s requests and ordered the exhibits at ECF Nos. 90 and 92 to remain sealed. Judge Freeman signed the order on April 16, 2025.
The detailed version
- Hazari v. County of Santa Clara · No. 5:19-cv-04392
- Beth Freeman
- Apr. 16, 2025
Background
Cyrus Hazari filed administrative motions asking the court to seal exhibits submitted in connection with his motion to set aside an order. The exhibits were filed at ECF Nos. 90 and 92. The defendants did not respond to the sealing motions.
Legal standard
The court explained that judicial records are generally available for public inspection. Documents more than marginally related to the merits of a case generally require “compelling reasons” to be sealed, while documents only marginally related to the merits may be sealed for “good cause.” Because the sealing request concerned a motion seeking relief from a nondispositive pretrial order, the court applied the good-cause standard. The court also required the request to be narrowly tailored and supported as required by the district’s sealing rule.
Court’s analysis
The court determined that the material concerned health information Hazari had treated as confidential. It found compelling reasons to seal information that could reveal confidential details about his health. The court also found that the request was narrowly tailored and that no less restrictive alternative to redacting the information was sufficient.
Ruling
The court granted Hazari’s requests to file the exhibits under seal. It ordered the exhibits filed at ECF Nos. 90 and 92 to remain under seal.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.