Strike 3 Holdings, LLC v. Doe
- Lorna Schofield
- 1:20-cv-07913
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Strike 3 Holdings v. Doe, Judge Schofield authorized a subpoena seeking John Doe’s name and address from Verizon Fios.
Strike 3 Holdings may seek John Doe’s identifying information from Verizon Fios and other identified Internet service providers. John Doe may receive notice if the federal cable-privacy provisions described in the order apply, and the disclosed information is limited to use in protecting and enforcing Strike 3 Holdings’ rights in the complaint.
What happened
Strike 3 Holdings, LLC v. Doe concerns Strike 3 Holdings’ request to identify John Doe, who was assigned the Internet Protocol address listed in the complaint.
Strike 3 Holdings asked to subpoena Verizon Fios before the parties held their required early case-management conference. The court found good cause for the request.
Judge Schofield allowed the subpoena and similar subpoenas to identified Internet providers, limited use of the information to enforcing the complaint’s rights, and required notice to Doe if federal cable-privacy law applied.
The detailed version
- Strike 3 Holdings, LLC v. Doe · No. 1:20-cv-07913
- Lorna Schofield
- Oct. 1, 2020
Background
Strike 3 Holdings, LLC sued John Doe, identified in the caption as the subscriber assigned Internet Protocol address 108.14.33.122. Strike 3 Holdings asked for permission to serve a third-party subpoena before the parties’ required Rule 26(f) conference.
Court’s Analysis
The court found that Strike 3 Holdings had shown “good cause” to serve Verizon Fios, described as the Internet service provider. The order allowed Strike 3 Holdings to use a Rule 45 subpoena to request Doe’s true name and address and required a copy of the order to be attached to the subpoena.
The court also allowed Strike 3 Holdings to serve the same type of subpoena on any other Internet service provider identified in response to a subpoena. If Verizon Fios qualified as a “cable operator” under federal law, it was required to comply with the law governing disclosure of subscriber-identifying information, including by sending Doe a copy of the order.
Disposition
Judge Lorna G. Schofield authorized the requested pre-conference subpoena process. Strike 3 Holdings may use information produced in response to a subpoena served on Verizon Fios only to protect and enforce the rights described in its complaint. The requirement to file a pre-motion letter under the judge’s individual rules was waived.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.