Doe v. Brisam Clinton LLC

Background

Jane Doe (K.S.) filed a complaint under a pseudonym against Brisam Clinton LLC, doing business as Comfort Inn; LCP Rye LLC, doing business as Hilton; BRE/Prime Mezz LLC, doing business as La Quinta Inn & Suites; La Quinta Holdings Inc.; Choice Hotels International, Inc.; Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, LLC; Hilton Resorts Corporation; and Hilton Management LLC. The complaint asserted a claim under the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act and sought to hold the corporate defendants liable for allegedly furthering sex trafficking. The plaintiff alleged that she was repeatedly trafficked for sex at several hotels in the district.

The plaintiff moved to proceed under a pseudonym in all public filings and proceedings. She represented that she would provide her full name and identifying information to the defendants through their counsel, subject to an appropriate protective order.

Issue

At this stage, the court considered whether to allow the complaint to be filed under a pseudonym and whether the clerk could issue summonses to the defendants. Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 10(a) generally requires the complaint’s title to name all parties. The Second Circuit has held that this naming requirement cannot be set aside lightly and has identified factors for weighing a plaintiff’s interest in anonymity against the public interest in disclosure and possible prejudice to defendants.

Ruling

The court permitted the filing of the complaint and the issuance of summonses. It relied on the highly sensitive and personal nature of the allegations and the plaintiff’s representation that she would disclose her identifying information to the defendants under a protective order. The court also noted that similar cases had allowed plaintiffs to proceed under pseudonyms during pretrial proceedings when defendants could obtain the plaintiffs’ personal information for investigating the claims.

The clerk was directed to issue the summonses requested by the plaintiff. The court expressly reserved decision on the motion to proceed under a pseudonym.