Strike 3 Holdings, LLC v. Doe

Background

Strike 3 Holdings, LLC sued a John Doe defendant whose name and address were not known. The plaintiff alleged that the defendant’s internet protocol address had been used to infringe its copyrighted works through the BitTorrent file-distribution network. Strike 3 stated that it owns copyrights to movies distributed through three subscription-based adult websites.

Plaintiff’s Request

Strike 3 asked for permission to file a motion under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(d)(1) seeking leave to serve a third-party subpoena on the internet service provider Starry before the parties held their required Rule 26(f) conference. The requested discovery was intended to identify the Doe defendant. Strike 3 also requested that any initial scheduling conference be adjourned, or not scheduled, until the defendant was identified and served.

The plaintiff argued that it would show good cause for early discovery, including a preliminary showing of copyright infringement, a specific discovery request, no alternative way to obtain the defendant’s identity, a central need for that information, and a minimal expectation of privacy in the requested information.

Ruling

The court granted the request to file a motion seeking leave to serve a third-party subpoena. The Clerk was directed to close docket number 6. The order does not state that the court granted the subpoena itself or ruled on the request to adjourn the scheduling conference.