Skillz Platform Inc. v. AviaGames Inc.
- Beth Freeman
- 5:21-cv-02436
- U.S. District Court · Northern District of California
- 5
In Skillz Platform v. AviaGames, Judge Freeman granted AviaGames’ renewed sealing motion and terminated its superseded motion.
AviaGames Inc. and Skillz Platform Inc.; the order also limits public access to the specified highlighted portions of exhibits containing confidential information.
What happened
Skillz Platform Inc. v. AviaGames Inc. concerned AviaGames’ renewed request to seal highlighted portions of exhibits attached to the parties’ summary-judgment briefs. Skillz did not oppose the request.
AviaGames said the material included confidential source code, trade secrets, and confidential information about its games, market analysis, and business strategies. The court found that the proposed redactions were narrowly tailored and that releasing the information could harm a party’s competitive position.
Judge Beth Labson Freeman granted AviaGames’ renewed motion at ECF No. 244 and terminated the earlier renewed motion at ECF No. 229 because the newer motion superseded it. The order did not decide the parties’ summary-judgment motions.
The detailed version
- Skillz Platform Inc. v. AviaGames Inc. · No. 5:21-cv-02436
- Beth Freeman
- Sept. 18, 2023
Background
AviaGames filed renewed administrative motions asking to seal certain exhibits attached to the parties’ briefs on summary judgment. AviaGames asked the court to allow its motion at ECF No. 244 to supersede its motion at ECF No. 229 because the newer motion covered all documents included in the earlier one. The court granted that request and terminated ECF No. 229.
Skillz Platform Inc. did not oppose the motion at ECF No. 244. AviaGames identified the proposed sealed material as including nonpublic and confidential source code, trade secrets, and information about its games, market analysis, business strategies, and other internal business matters. AviaGames argued that public disclosure could cause competitive harm by providing a roadmap to sensitive product information.
Legal standard
Because the exhibits were connected to summary-judgment motions, the court applied the “compelling reasons” standard for sealing judicial records. Under that standard, trade secrets and confidential business information whose release could harm a party’s competitive standing may support sealing. The court also applied Civil Local Rule 79-5, which requires a sealing request to explain the interests supporting secrecy, the injury from disclosure, why less restrictive alternatives are insufficient, and why the proposed redactions are narrowly tailored.
The court noted that it had previously denied without prejudice AviaGames’ requests to seal these exhibits in their entirety. In the renewed motion, AviaGames sought to seal only highlighted portions. The court found those proposed redactions narrowly tailored to the sealable material.
Ruling
The court granted AviaGames’ renewed administrative motion to file under seal at ECF No. 244. The court granted sealing for the highlighted portions of the listed exhibits because they contained confidential source code and/or confidential business information, and releasing that information would harm a party’s competitive standing. The court also terminated AviaGames’ renewed motion at ECF No. 229 as superseded by ECF No. 244.
This order addressed only the sealing requests. It did not rule on the parties’ underlying motions for summary judgment.
Read the full 5-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.