Strike 3 Holdings, LLC v. John Doe subscriber assigned IP address 76.14.126.230
- Joseph Spero
- 3:21-cv-05090
- U.S. District Court · Northern District of California
- 2
In Strike 3 Holdings v. John Doe, Judge Spero granted permission to subpoena internet providers for the subscriber’s identity, with notice and confidentiality protections.
Strike 3 Holdings, LLC, the John Doe subscriber associated with IP address 76.14.126.230, Wave Broadband, any other identified internet service provider, and subscribers whose information is sought.
What happened
Strike 3 Holdings, LLC asked for permission to subpoena an internet provider before the parties’ required early case conference. The request sought the name and address connected to IP address 76.14.126.230.
The court found good cause and granted the request. Strike 3 may subpoena Wave Broadband and any other internet provider identified in response, subject to the order’s notice, challenge, preservation, and confidentiality requirements.
The order requires notice to affected subscribers, allows 30 days to challenge a subpoena, and limits use of disclosed information to protecting rights under the Copyright Act. Judge Spero also ordered identifying information filed under seal.
The detailed version
- Strike 3 Holdings, LLC v. John Doe subscriber assigned IP address 76.14.126.230 · No. 3:21-cv-05090
- Joseph Spero
- Sept. 23, 2021
Background
Strike 3 Holdings, LLC filed an application asking for permission to serve a third-party subpoena before the parties held the conference required by Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(f). A subpoena is a legal demand for information from a person or entity that is not a party to the lawsuit. The requested information concerned the true name and address of the defendant associated with IP address 76.14.126.230.
Ruling
The court found that Strike 3 had shown “good cause” to serve the subpoena. It granted permission to serve Wave Broadband with a subpoena under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 45, requiring Wave to provide the defendant’s true name and address. The order says that Comcast assigned the IP address, while also identifying Wave as the provider to be subpoenaed; this summary preserves the order’s wording without resolving that reference.
The court also authorized Strike 3 to serve the same type of subpoena on any internet service provider identified in response as providing internet service to the defendant. The order treated the authorized subpoenas as court orders permitting disclosure under 47 U.S.C. § 551, subject to the statute’s notice requirement.
Notice and Challenges
Each internet service provider has 30 days after being served to notify each subscriber whose information is sought by providing a copy of the subpoena and the order. Each subscriber and provider then has 30 days after service to file a motion challenging the subpoena, including a motion to cancel or change it. If no timely challenge is filed after service on a subscriber, the provider has 10 days to produce the responsive information for that subscriber.
The providers must preserve the subpoenaed information while waiting for production or the final resolution of a timely challenge. Any information disclosed may be used only to protect Strike 3’s rights under the Copyright Act. Names and other identifying information for current or proposed defendants and other subscribers must be filed under seal and not otherwise disclosed.
Disposition
The corrected order granted Strike 3 Holdings, LLC’s ex parte application to serve the subpoena. It did not decide the underlying copyright claims or determine whether the John Doe subscriber infringed any copyright.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.