McCutcheon v. Colgate-Palmolive Co.

Background

The plaintiffs’ attorney submitted a letter asking for two forms of relief related to a proposed class-action settlement and a planned motion for preliminary approval. First, the parties jointly requested permission to file Attachment A to the settlement agreement under seal. Attachment A was an estimate spreadsheet containing the names of class members and their spouses, Social Security numbers, dates of birth, last known mailing addresses, and each class member’s estimated settlement benefit. The letter stated that the spreadsheet concerned 1,177 class members and their spouses.

Second, the plaintiffs requested permission to exceed the word limit for their memorandum supporting preliminary approval of the proposed settlement and approval of notice to the class. They requested permission to use no more than 11,450 words. The letter said additional words were needed to explain a proposed settlement reached after complex litigation, two appeals, unsuccessful mediations, and a history extending back decades.

Court’s Analysis

The court stated that sealing requests are evaluated under a three-part inquiry. It determined that the class members’ privacy interests in keeping their personal, private, or otherwise sensitive information confidential outweighed the public’s interest in access to the spreadsheet. The court also stated that the spreadsheet would be filed under seal only as provided in Judge Schofield’s Rule 1.D.3.

Ruling

The court granted the application. It permitted the Estimate Spreadsheet to be filed under seal as specified in Rule 1.D.3 and allowed the plaintiffs to file their memorandum supporting preliminary approval and approval of class notice using no more than 11,450 words. The court requested that the clerk close the motion at Docket No. 332. The ruling addressed the sealing and word-limit requests; the text does not state that the court granted preliminary approval of the proposed settlement.