Strike 3 Holdings, LLC v. John Doe subscriber assigned IP address 24.4.24.197
- Haywood Gilliam
- 4:23-cv-06065
- U.S. District Court · Northern District of California
- 3
In Strike 3 Holdings v. John Doe, Judge Gilliam allowed a subpoena for the defendant’s name and address, subject to notice and confidentiality rules.
Strike 3 Holdings, LLC, the John Doe subscriber associated with IP address 24.4.24.197, Comcast Cable, and any other internet-service provider identified in response to a subpoena.
What happened
In Strike 3 Holdings, LLC v. John Doe Subscriber Assigned IP Address 24.4.24.197, Strike 3 Holdings asked to serve Comcast Cable with a subpoena before the parties’ required initial conference. The court found good cause for allowing the early subpoena.
The order allows Strike 3 Holdings to seek the defendant’s true name and address from Comcast and, if necessary, from another identified internet provider. The provider must notify the subscriber and give the subscriber and provider 30 days to challenge the subpoena. Any information disclosed must be kept confidential while the defendant has an opportunity to ask to proceed anonymously.
Judge Haywood S. Gilliam, Jr. granted the application. If no challenge is filed within the applicable period, the provider must produce the responsive information within 10 days after the challenge period ends.
The detailed version
- Strike 3 Holdings, LLC v. John Doe subscriber assigned IP address 24.4.24.197 · No. 4:23-cv-06065
- Haywood Gilliam
- Dec. 11, 2023
Background
Strike 3 Holdings, LLC asked for permission to serve a third-party subpoena on Comcast Cable before the parties held the conference required by Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(f). The subpoena seeks the true name and address of the defendant identified in the complaint and caption by the internet-protocol address 24.4.24.197. The court found that Strike 3 Holdings had shown good cause under Rule 45 for serving the subpoena early.
Order
The court granted permission to serve Comcast Cable with a Rule 45 subpoena and required Strike 3 Holdings to attach a copy of the order. Strike 3 Holdings may also serve the same type of subpoena on any other internet-service provider identified in response to a subpoena as providing internet services to the defendant.
If the provider qualifies as a cable operator under 47 U.S.C. § 522(5), it must follow 47 U.S.C. § 551(c)(2)(B), which permits disclosure of personal identifying information under a court order if the subscriber is notified. Each provider must serve the subscriber with the subpoena and this order within 30 days after the provider is served. The provider may use reasonable means, including first-class mail or overnight service to the subscriber’s last known address.
The subscriber and the provider each have 30 days after service on that person or entity to file a motion challenging the subpoena, including a motion to quash or modify it. If that period expires without a challenge, the provider has 10 days to produce the requested information to Strike 3 Holdings.
Confidentiality and disposition
The court issued a limited protective order because the subscriber may not be the person who infringed Strike 3 Holdings’ copyright and because of the potential embarrassment from being publicly accused of illegally downloading adult motion pictures. Any name or other personal identifying information released to Strike 3 Holdings must be treated as confidential and may not be publicly disclosed until the defendant has had an opportunity to ask to proceed anonymously and the court has ruled on that request. If the defendant does not file that request within 30 days after the information is disclosed, the limited protective order will expire.
Judge Haywood S. Gilliam, Jr. ordered that the application was granted. This order concerns early discovery and subpoena procedures; it does not decide whether the defendant infringed copyright.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.