Strike 3 Holdings, LLC v. John Doe subscriber assigned IP address 174.62.70.205
- Lucy Koh
- 5:21-cv-06216
- U.S. District Court · Northern District of California
- 3
In Strike 3 Holdings v. John Doe, Judge Van Keulen allowed a subpoena to identify the subscriber linked to an internet address.
Strike 3 Holdings, LLC, John Doe, and Comcast Cable. Strike 3 may seek limited subscriber information, while John Doe receives notice and an opportunity to challenge the subpoena or request to proceed anonymously.
What happened
Strike 3 Holdings, LLC sued a defendant identified only as John Doe, linked to IP address 174.62.70.205. Strike 3 asked to subpoena Comcast before the parties’ required initial conference to learn the subscriber’s name and address.
The court allowed the subpoena, but limited it to the subscriber information for a specified period surrounding the alleged infringing acts. Comcast had to give the defendant notice, and the defendant could challenge the subpoena before Comcast disclosed information.
Judge Susan Van Keulen also restricted how Strike 3 could use or publicly disclose any information and required Strike 3 to seek separate permission before subpoenaing another internet provider. The order granted the motion subject to these conditions.
The detailed version
- Strike 3 Holdings, LLC v. John Doe subscriber assigned IP address 174.62.70.205 · No. 5:21-cv-06216
- Lucy Koh
- Sept. 13, 2021
Background
Strike 3 Holdings, LLC asked for permission to serve Comcast Cable, the internet service provider for the defendant identified as John Doe, with a third-party subpoena before the parties held the conference required by Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(f). The subpoena sought to identify the defendant associated with IP address 174.62.70.205. The court decided the motion without a hearing.
Ruling
The court granted Strike 3’s motion. The subpoena could request only the actual name and address of the subscriber to whom Comcast assigned the specified IP address during the period beginning 14 days before the first alleged infringing act and ending 14 days after the last alleged infringing act listed in Exhibit A to the complaint.
The court imposed these conditions:
- Strike 3 had to attach the order to the subpoena. - Strike 3 could use information from Comcast only to protect its rights described in the complaint. - Comcast had to serve the subpoena and the order on the defendant. - The subpoena’s return date had to be at least 45 days after Comcast was served. - Comcast could not disclose identifying information to Strike 3 before the return date or before any motion to quash or modify the subpoena was resolved. - The defendant had 30 days after service to file a motion challenging the subpoena, including a motion to quash or modify it, in the court for the district where compliance was required. - Comcast had to preserve the subpoenaed information while any timely challenge was pending. - If Comcast disclosed information to Strike 3, Strike 3 could not publicly disclose it until the defendant had an opportunity to ask to proceed anonymously and the court ruled on that request.
If the defendant did not seek permission to proceed anonymously within 30 days after the information was disclosed to Strike 3, the limited protective order would expire. The court also stated that papers containing identifying information in a request to proceed anonymously could be filed under seal temporarily, with an opportunity for Strike 3 to respond.
Finally, the court denied Strike 3’s request, included in its proposed order, to subpoena any other internet provider identified later. Strike 3 had to seek separate permission before serving a subpoena on another provider. The order addressed discovery and identification procedures; it did not decide the underlying allegations against John Doe.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.