Strike 3 Holdings, LLC v. John Doe subscriber assigned IP address 71.198.249.86
- Donna Ryu
- 4:22-cv-02234
- U.S. District Court · Northern District of California
- 3
In Strike 3 Holdings v. John Doe, Judge Ryu allowed early subpoenas to identify the subscriber linked to the listed internet address.
Strike 3 Holdings, LLC, the anonymous subscriber assigned IP address 71.198.249.86, Comcast Cable, and any other internet-service provider identified through the subpoena process.
What happened
Strike 3 Holdings, LLC v. John Doe Subscriber Assigned IP Address 71.198.249.86 involved Strike 3’s request to serve a subpoena before the parties’ required initial conference. Strike 3 sought the subscriber’s name and address from Comcast Cable, the internet provider associated with the listed IP address.
The court found good cause and allowed Strike 3 to serve the subpoena. The order also allowed subpoenas to other internet providers identified through the process. It required notice to the subscriber, gave the subscriber and provider 30 days to challenge the subpoena, and limited Strike 3’s use of the information to protecting and enforcing the rights described in its complaint.
Judge Donna M. Ryu issued the order on May 12, 2022. The order also required preservation of the information, directed that identifying information be filed under seal, and stated that the subscriber could be required to seek permission to proceed anonymously if substantive motions were filed.
The detailed version
- Strike 3 Holdings, LLC v. John Doe subscriber assigned IP address 71.198.249.86 · No. 4:22-cv-02234
- Donna Ryu
- May 12, 2022
Background
Strike 3 Holdings, LLC filed an ex parte application seeking permission to serve a third-party subpoena before the parties held the conference required by Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(f). The proposed subpoena was directed to Comcast Cable, identified as the internet service provider, and sought the true name and address of the defendant associated with the IP address listed in Exhibit A to the complaint.
Ruling
The court found that Strike 3 had established good cause and allowed it to serve Comcast with a subpoena under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 45. Strike 3 was required to attach a copy of the order to the subpoena. The order also authorized a Rule 45 subpoena to any other internet-service provider identified in response to a subpoena as providing internet services to one of the defendants.
If Comcast qualified as a cable operator under 47 U.S.C. § 522(5), the order required it to follow 47 U.S.C. § 551(c)(2)(B), including notifying the subscriber by sending the subscriber a copy of the order. More generally, the provider had to serve the subscriber with copies of the subpoena and order within 30 days after service on the provider, using any reasonable means, including first-class mail or overnight service to the subscriber’s last known address.
The subscriber and the provider each had 30 days after service on that party to file a motion contesting the subpoena, including a motion to quash or modify it. If the subscriber did not challenge the subpoena within that period, the provider would have 10 days to produce the responsive information. The provider also had to preserve the subpoenaed information until producing it or until final resolution of a timely motion to quash.
The order limited Strike 3’s use of information obtained through the subpoena to protecting and enforcing the rights described in its complaint. It required the names and other identifying information of current or proposed defendants to be filed under seal. The court also stated that, if substantive motions were filed, it might require the defendant to seek permission to proceed anonymously. Judge Donna M. Ryu signed the order.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.