Strike 3 Holdings v. John Doe subscriber assigned IP address 108.196.203.123
Strike 3 Holdings, LLC v. John Doe subscriber assigned IP address 108.196.203.123
- Thomas Hixson
- 3:23-cv-03082
- U.S. District Court · Northern District of California
- 2
In Strike 3 Holdings v. John Doe, Judge Hixson granted permission to subpoena the internet provider for the defendant’s name and address.
Strike 3 Holdings, LLC may seek the subscriber’s identifying information. The John Doe subscriber and AT&T Internet receive notice and may challenge the subpoena, while any later-identified internet service provider may also be required to respond.
What happened
Strike 3 Holdings, LLC sued a John Doe subscriber identified by an internet-protocol address and asked to learn the subscriber’s identity before the normal early case-management conference.
The court found good cause and allowed Strike 3 to serve AT&T Internet with a subpoena requiring the provider to disclose the defendant’s true name and address. The order also permits subpoenas to other internet providers identified through that process.
Judge Thomas S. Hixson set notice, objection, preservation, confidentiality, and use restrictions, but the order did not decide the underlying claims.
The detailed version
- Strike 3 Holdings v. John Doe subscriber assigned IP address 108.196.203.123 · No. 3:23-cv-03082
- Thomas Hixson
- July 26, 2023
Background
Strike 3 Holdings, LLC filed an ex parte application—an application made without first giving the other side advance notice—for permission to serve a third-party subpoena before the parties’ required Rule 26(f) conference. The proposed subpoena sought information identifying the John Doe subscriber associated with the internet-protocol address listed in Exhibit A to the complaint.
Court’s ruling
The court found that Strike 3 had shown “good cause” to serve a Rule 45 subpoena on AT&T Internet, identified as the internet service provider. The order allows Strike 3 to require AT&T Internet to provide the defendant’s true name and address. It also allows Strike 3 to serve the same type of subpoena on another internet service provider identified in response to a subpoena.
Limits and procedures
If the provider qualifies as a “cable operator” under the cited federal statute, it must notify the subscriber by sending a copy of the order. The provider must serve the subscriber with the subpoena and order within 30 days after service on the provider. The subscriber and provider then have 30 days from service to file a motion challenging the subpoena, including a motion to cancel or modify it. If no timely challenge is filed, the provider has 10 days to produce the responsive information.
The provider must preserve the subpoenaed information while a timely challenge is pending or until the information is delivered to Strike 3. Strike 3 may use the disclosed information only to protect and enforce the rights stated in its complaint. Any name or other identifying information of a current or proposed defendant must be filed under seal. The order granted Strike 3’s application; it did not decide the underlying claims.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.