Strike 3 Holdings, LLC v. Doe
- Kenneth Karas
- 7:22-cv-03853
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Strike 3 Holdings v. Doe, Judge Karas authorized a subpoena seeking Doe’s name and address from Verizon Fios.
Strike 3 Holdings, LLC may seek John Doe’s name and address from Verizon Fios and potentially other identified Internet service providers. John Doe may receive notice of the order if the statutory cable-operator condition applies.
What happened
Strike 3 Holdings, LLC sued John Doe, identified in the complaint by an Internet Protocol address. Strike 3 asked to subpoena Verizon Fios before the parties held their required initial conference.
The court found good cause for early discovery and authorized Strike 3 to serve Verizon Fios with a subpoena seeking the true name and address of the subscriber assigned that Internet Protocol address. The order also permits subpoenas to other Internet service providers identified through the process.
The order requires notice to the subscriber if Verizon Fios is a cable operator and limits use of the disclosed information to protecting and enforcing Strike 3’s rights in the complaint. Judge Kenneth Karas issued the order on May 24, 2022.
The detailed version
- Strike 3 Holdings, LLC v. Doe · No. 7:22-cv-03853
- Kenneth Karas
- May 24, 2022
Background
Strike 3 Holdings, LLC asked for permission to serve a third-party subpoena on Verizon Fios before the parties held the conference required by Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(f). The complaint identifies the defendant as John Doe, the subscriber assigned Internet Protocol address 108.54.184.253.
Court’s Analysis and Order
The court found that Strike 3 had established “good cause” for early discovery. It authorized Strike 3 to serve Verizon Fios with a subpoena under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 45 requiring the provider to disclose the true name and address of the defendant to whom it assigned the Internet Protocol address listed in the complaint. Strike 3 must attach a copy of the order to the subpoena.
The order also authorizes Strike 3 to serve the same type of subpoena on any service provider identified in response to a subpoena as providing Internet services to one of the defendants.
If Verizon Fios qualifies as a cable operator under the cited federal statute, it must comply with the statute’s requirement concerning disclosure of subscriber-identifying information by sending a copy of the court’s order to the defendant. Strike 3 may use information disclosed in response to the subpoena only to protect and enforce the rights stated in its complaint.
Disposition
The court authorized the requested early third-party discovery. Judge Kenneth Karas did not decide the underlying claims in this order.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.