Didonato v. GS Services Limited Partnership
- Lorna Schofield
- 1:20-cv-02154-LGS
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 1
In Didonato v. GC Services, Judge Schofield granted Defendants’ motion to seal a letter containing Navient’s confidential business information.
Defendants, Navient, Plaintiff, and members of the public seeking access to the sealed letter.
What happened
In Francis Didonato v. GC Services Limited Partnership, et al., Defendants filed a responsive letter under seal and asked the court to keep it sealed.
The court concluded that sealing the letter was necessary to prevent the unauthorized disclosure of Navient’s confidential business information. The letter will remain sealed.
Judge Lorna G. Schofield granted Defendants’ motion to seal retroactively, ordered Defendants to serve the order on Navient by January 29, 2021, and directed the clerk to close the motion.
The detailed version
- Didonato v. GS Services Limited Partnership · No. 1:20-cv-02154-LGS
- Lorna Schofield
- Jan. 26, 2021
Background
On January 25, 2021, Defendants filed under seal a responsive letter to Plaintiff’s letter at Docket No. 105. The responsive letter was filed at Docket No. 117. Defendants also filed a motion to seal that letter at Docket Nos. 114 and 115.
Court’s Analysis
The court explained that the public generally has a right to access judicial documents, but that right is not absolute. Courts must balance that presumption of access against competing considerations. Here, the court found that sealing the letter was necessary to prevent the unauthorized dissemination of Navient’s confidential business information.
Ruling
The court granted Defendants’ motion to seal retroactively. The letter at Docket No. 117 will remain sealed. The court also ordered Defendants to serve a copy of the order on Navient by January 29, 2021. The clerk was directed to close the motion at Docket No. 115.
Read the full 1-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.