Ulbricht v. United States
- Lorna Schofield
- 1:19-cv-07512
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Ulbricht v. United States, Judge Schofield granted former counsel’s request to seal an affidavit addressing ineffective-assistance allegations.
Ross William Ulbricht and his former trial counsel are directly affected. Former trial counsel must file the sworn affidavit under seal by February 5, 2020, and the sealing protects the attorney-client privilege discussed in the order.
What happened
In Ulbricht v. United States, former trial counsel was ordered to submit a sworn affidavit responding to Ross William Ulbricht’s allegations that his counsel had provided ineffective assistance. The deadline was extended to January 24, 2020, and the parties’ protective order limited the affidavit’s use to this proceeding.
Former counsel emailed the affidavit to the court and asked to file it under seal. The court noted the parties’ agreement that Ulbricht had not generally given up attorney-client privilege by filing his petition.
Judge Schofield granted the request to seal. She ordered former counsel to file the affidavit under seal by February 5, 2020, following the court’s rules.
The detailed version
- Ulbricht v. United States · No. 1:19-cv-07512
- Lorna Schofield
- Jan. 28, 2020
Background
A December 20, 2019 order directed Ross William Ulbricht’s former trial counsel to provide sworn testimony in an affidavit addressing Ulbricht’s allegations of ineffective assistance of counsel. The order required the affidavit to comply with a protective order agreed to by the parties. The filing deadline was later extended to January 24, 2020.
The protective order was required to state that the affidavit and documents supplied by former trial counsel could be used only in this proceeding, to protect attorney-client privilege. On January 24, 2020, former counsel emailed the affidavit to the court’s Chambers Inbox and asked to file it under seal.
Ruling
The court granted the request to file the affidavit under seal. It explained that the usual presumption that court records should be publicly accessible may be overcome by substantial interests, including preserving attorney-client privilege. The court also noted the parties’ agreement that Ulbricht had not generally waived that privilege by filing his petition.
Judge Lorna G. Schofield ordered former trial counsel to file the sworn affidavit under seal by February 5, 2020, in accordance with the court’s Individual Rules. This order addressed the filing of the affidavit and did not decide the underlying ineffective-assistance allegations.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.