Strike 3 Holdings v. John Doe subscriber assigned IP address 108.217.160.26
- Kandis Westmore
- 4:21-cv-03463
- U.S. District Court · Northern District of California
- 3
In Strike 3 Holdings v. John Doe, Judge Westmore allowed subpoenas to identify the internet subscriber linked to an IP address, subject to notice and challenges.
Strike 3 Holdings, LLC, the defendant associated with IP address 108.217.160.26, and internet service providers receiving the authorized subpoenas.
What happened
Strike 3 Holdings, LLC asked the court in Strike 3 Holdings, LLC v. John Doe Subscriber Assigned IP Address 108.217.160.26 for permission to subpoena an internet provider before the parties’ required initial conference. The request sought the defendant’s true name and address based on the listed IP address.
The court found good cause and authorized subpoenas to AT&T U-verse and any later-identified internet provider serving the defendant. Providers must notify affected subscribers, who may challenge, quash, or modify a subpoena within 30 days. If no challenge is filed, the provider must produce the information within 10 more days.
Judge Kandis Westmore also required providers to preserve the information, limited its use to protecting Strike 3’s rights under the Copyright Act, and required filings containing identifying information to be sealed.
The detailed version
- Strike 3 Holdings v. John Doe subscriber assigned IP address 108.217.160.26 · No. 4:21-cv-03463
- Kandis Westmore
- May 25, 2021
Background
Strike 3 Holdings, LLC moved ex parte for permission to serve a third-party subpoena before the Rule 26(f) conference. The subpoena sought information identifying the defendant associated with IP address 108.217.160.26.
Court’s ruling
The court found that Strike 3 had established good cause to serve AT&T U-verse, identified as the initial internet service provider. The court authorized a subpoena under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 45 seeking only the defendant’s true name and address. Strike 3 was required to attach the order to the subpoena.
The court also authorized Strike 3 to serve the same type of subpoena on any service provider identified in response as providing internet services to the defendant. The court stated that the authorized subpoenas qualified as court orders permitting disclosure under 47 U.S.C. § 551, provided that the subscriber received notice.
Notice and challenges
Each provider must serve the affected subscriber with the subpoena and a copy of the order within 30 days after the provider is served. Each subscriber and provider has 30 days after service to file a motion contesting the subpoena, including a motion to quash or modify it. If that period expires without a challenge, the provider has 10 days to produce the responsive information.
Providers must preserve subpoenaed information until they deliver it to Strike 3 or until a timely motion to quash is finally resolved. Information disclosed in response to a subpoena may be used only to protect Strike 3’s rights under the Copyright Act. Documents containing the name or other personally identifying information of any current or proposed defendant must be filed under seal, following the procedure in Civil Local Rule 79-5. Public redacted filings should redact only the defendant’s name and other personally identifying information.
Disposition
The court granted Strike 3 permission to serve the authorized subpoenas subject to the stated notice, challenge, preservation, use, and sealing requirements. The order was entered by Judge Kandis A. Westmore, United States Magistrate Judge.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.