Strike 3 Holdings, LLC v. John Doe subscriber assigned IP address 24.4.209.194
- Joseph Spero
- 3:24-cv-02505
- U.S. District Court · Northern District of California
- 3
In Strike 3 Holdings v. John Doe, Judge Spero authorized subpoenas seeking the subscriber’s identity from Comcast and other identified internet providers.
Strike 3 Holdings, LLC; the John Doe subscriber assigned IP address 24.4.209.194; Comcast Cable Communications, LLC; and any other Internet service provider identified in Comcast’s response.
What happened
Strike 3 Holdings, LLC asked the court for permission to subpoena Comcast before the parties held their usual early case-management conference. The request sought the name and address of the person assigned the listed Internet address.
The court found good cause and authorized Strike 3 Holdings to serve Comcast with a subpoena seeking the defendant’s true name and address. It also authorized subpoenas to other Internet providers identified in Comcast’s response.
Judge Joseph C. Spero required notice to affected subscribers and providers, allowed 30 days to challenge a subpoena, required providers to preserve the information, and limited its use to protecting copyright rights.
The detailed version
- Strike 3 Holdings, LLC v. John Doe subscriber assigned IP address 24.4.209.194 · No. 3:24-cv-02505
- Joseph Spero
- June 3, 2024
Background
Strike 3 Holdings, LLC applied without advance notice to the opposing party for permission to serve a third-party subpoena before the parties’ required Rule 26(f) conference. The subpoena sought information identifying the defendant associated with Internet Protocol address 24.4.209.194.
Ruling
The court found that Strike 3 Holdings had shown “good cause” to serve a subpoena on Comcast Cable Communications, LLC. The court authorized Strike 3 Holdings to serve Comcast with a subpoena under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 45 requiring Comcast to provide the defendant’s true name and address.
The court also authorized Strike 3 Holdings to serve a similar subpoena on any Internet service provider identified in Comcast’s response as providing Internet services to the defendant.
Notice and Challenges
Each provider must give every affected subscriber a copy of the subpoena and the order within 30 days after receiving the subpoena. Each subscriber and provider then has 30 days after service to file a motion contesting 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 responsive information.
The providers must preserve the subpoenaed information until they deliver it to Strike 3 Holdings or until a timely motion to quash is finally resolved. The order also states that the subpoenas qualify as court orders authorizing disclosure under 47 U.S.C. § 551, which governs disclosure of cable subscribers’ personally identifiable information.
Limits on Use
Information disclosed in response to a subpoena may be used only to protect Strike 3 Holdings’ rights under the Copyright Act. The order also directs that identifying information concerning a current or proposed defendant be filed under seal and not otherwise disclosed. The opinion text’s final sealing language is partially truncated.
Disposition
Judge Joseph C. Spero authorized the requested early third-party subpoenas subject to the notice, challenge, preservation, use, and filing restrictions described above. This was a discovery-related order and did not decide the underlying copyright claims.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.