Brown v. Google LLC
- Yvonne Rogers
- 4:20-cv-03664
- U.S. District Court · Northern District of California
- 2
In Brown v. Google LLC, Judge Van Keulen granted Google's request to seal specified transcript portions containing confidential technical information.
Google LLC, the plaintiffs, and members of the public seeking access to the discovery-hearing transcript.
What happened
In Brown v. Google LLC, Google asked the court to seal parts of a transcript from a June 2, 2021, discovery hearing.
The court applied a lower standard because the transcript was submitted in connection with a discovery-related motion rather than a motion about the case's underlying claims. It found that the requested redactions were narrowly tailored to protect confidential information about Google's internal systems and operations.
Judge Van Keulen granted the request as to the listed redacted portions of the transcript. The order did not decide the underlying claims in the case.
The detailed version
- Brown v. Google LLC · No. 4:20-cv-03664
- Yvonne Rogers
- June 21, 2021
Background
The parties jointly submitted an administrative request in which Google asked the court to seal portions of the transcript from a June 2, 2021, discovery hearing. The court explained that judicial records generally carry a strong presumption of public access.
Legal standard
The court applied the “good cause” standard under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(c) because the information was submitted in connection with a discovery-related motion, not a motion concerning the merits of the case. The court noted that a different standard could apply in another context and that parties seeking to seal records must also follow the court's local procedures.
Ruling
After considering the sealing request, supporting declarations, and filings, the court found good cause and granted the request as to the specified redacted portions of the June 2, 2021, discovery-hearing transcript. The court found the redactions narrowly tailored to protect confidential technical information about Google's internal systems and operations, including details about the types and proprietary functions of identifiers and cookies Google uses internally. The order was signed by United States Magistrate Judge Susan Van Keulen.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.