Strike 3 Holdings, LLC v. John Doe subscriber assigned IP address 73.231.66.141
- Haywood Gilliam
- 4:23-cv-06061
- U.S. District Court · Northern District of California
- 3
In Strike 3 Holdings v. John Doe, Judge Gilliam allowed a subpoena to identify the subscriber linked to an internet address, with notice and privacy protections.
Strike 3 Holdings, LLC, the unidentified subscriber assigned the listed internet address, Comcast Cable, and any later-identified internet service provider receiving a subpoena.
What happened
Strike 3 Holdings, LLC v. John Doe Subscriber Assigned IP Address 73.231.66.141 concerns Strike 3 Holdings’ request to learn the subscriber’s identity in a copyright case. The company sought permission to subpoena Comcast before the parties’ required early case-management conference.
The court granted the request. Strike 3 may subpoena Comcast for the defendant’s true name and address and may subpoena later-identified internet providers in the same way. The providers must notify affected subscribers, who may challenge the subpoenas within 30 days. Any identifying information produced must remain confidential unless the subscriber has had an opportunity to ask to proceed anonymously.
Judge Haywood S. Gilliam, Jr. issued the order on December 11, 2023. The order did not decide whether the subscriber infringed copyright; it addressed only the requested subpoena and related protections.
The detailed version
- Strike 3 Holdings, LLC v. John Doe subscriber assigned IP address 73.231.66.141 · No. 4:23-cv-06061
- Haywood Gilliam
- Dec. 11, 2023
Background
Strike 3 Holdings, LLC filed an application without advance notice to the opposing party for permission to serve a third-party subpoena before the parties’ Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(f) conference. The subpoena sought information from Comcast Cable, identified as the internet service provider, concerning the subscriber to whom the internet address listed in the complaint and case caption had been assigned.
Ruling
The court found that Strike 3 had shown “good cause” under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 45. It granted Strike 3 permission to serve Comcast with a subpoena demanding the defendant John Doe’s true name and address. Strike 3 must attach the order to the subpoena.
The order also permits Strike 3 to serve a similar subpoena on any other internet provider identified in response to a subpoena as providing internet service to the defendant. If an internet provider qualifies as a cable operator under 47 U.S.C. § 522(5), the order requires compliance with the notice requirement in 47 U.S.C. § 551(c)(2)(B) by sending the subscriber a copy of the order.
Each provider has 30 days after service to notify each subscriber whose information is sought by providing a copy of the subpoena and the order. Each subscriber and provider then has 30 days after service to file a motion challenging, quashing, or modifying the subpoena. If no challenge is filed, the provider has 10 additional days to produce the responsive information.
Confidentiality and scope
The identifying information may be used only to protect and enforce Strike 3’s rights described in the complaint. The court ordered that the information be treated as confidential and not publicly disclosed until the defendant has had an opportunity to seek permission to proceed anonymously and the court has ruled on that request. If the defendant does not seek anonymous treatment within 30 days after the information is disclosed to Strike 3, the limited protective order will expire.
The court noted that the subscriber might not be the person who infringed Strike 3’s copyright and that public accusations involving alleged downloading of adult motion pictures could cause embarrassment. The order therefore resolved the subpoena request and privacy procedures, not the underlying infringement question.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.