Strike 3 Holdings v. John Doe subscriber assigned IP address 198.27.175.139
- Yvonne Rogers
- 4:22-cv-02235
- U.S. District Court · Northern District of California
- 2
In Strike 3 Holdings v. John Doe, Judge Hixson granted Strike 3’s request to subpoena an internet provider before the required conference to identify the subscriber.
Strike 3 Holdings, LLC may seek the unidentified subscriber’s name and address from Sonic.net, LLC and certain other internet-service providers. The subscriber and providers received notice, challenge, preservation, confidentiality, and use restrictions under the order.
What happened
Strike 3 Holdings, LLC asked the court for permission to subpoena Sonic.net, LLC before the parties held the usual discovery-planning conference in its case against the subscriber assigned the listed internet address.
The court found that Strike 3 had shown good cause to seek the subscriber’s true name and address from the internet provider. The order also allowed subpoenas to other internet providers identified through those responses.
Judge Thomas S. Hixson granted the request and set rules for notice, challenges, preservation, use, and sealing of the information. The subscriber and provider each had 30 days to contest a subpoena.
The detailed version
- Strike 3 Holdings v. John Doe subscriber assigned IP address 198.27.175.139 · No. 4:22-cv-02235
- Yvonne Rogers
- May 4, 2022
Background
Strike 3 Holdings, LLC applied for permission to serve a subpoena on Sonic.net, LLC before the parties held the conference normally required under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(f). The defendant is identified in the caption as John Doe Subscriber Assigned IP Address 198.27.175.139.
Ruling
The court found that Strike 3 had established “good cause” to serve Sonic.net with a subpoena under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 45. The subpoena may require Sonic.net to provide Strike 3 with the defendant’s true name and address. Strike 3 must attach a copy of the order to the subpoena.
The court also authorized Strike 3 to serve the same type of subpoena on any other internet-service provider identified in response to a subpoena as providing internet services to one of the defendants.
Conditions on Disclosure
If Sonic.net qualifies as a “cable operator” under 47 U.S.C. § 522(5), it must comply with 47 U.S.C. § 551(c)(2)(B), including notifying the subscriber by sending the subscriber a copy of the order. More generally, the internet-service provider must serve the subscriber with a copy of the subpoena and the order within 30 days after the subpoena is served on the provider. The provider may use any reasonable means, including first-class mail or overnight delivery to the subscriber’s last known address.
The subscriber and the provider each have 30 days after service to file a motion contesting the subpoena, including a motion to cancel or modify it. If that period expires without a challenge, the provider has 10 days to produce the responsive information for that subscriber. The provider must preserve the subpoenaed information while awaiting production or the final resolution of a timely challenge.
Strike 3 may use information disclosed in response to the subpoena only to protect and enforce the rights described in its complaint. Any name or other identifying information of a current or proposed defendant must be filed under seal.
Disposition
Judge Thomas S. Hixson granted Strike 3’s ex parte motion for leave to serve a third-party subpoena before a Rule 26(f) conference. The order did not decide the underlying claims against the unidentified defendant.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.