IBM Corporation v. Micro Focus, Inc.

Background

On February 29, 2024, the Court directed the parties to submit proposed redactions to ECF No. 189. The parties submitted their proposals on March 5, 2024, in ECF No. 193-1.

Legal standard

The court explained that the common law and the First Amendment create a presumption that the public may access judicial documents. A judicial document is a filed item relevant to the court’s work and useful in the judicial process. To overcome that presumption, sealing must be necessary to protect higher values and narrowly tailored to serve that interest. The presumption is generally lower for filings connected to discovery disputes than for materials introduced at trial or filed with dispositive motions.

Courts in the Southern District of New York routinely allow sealing or redaction of commercially sensitive information to protect confidential business interests and financial information.

Ruling

The Court reviewed the proposed redactions and determined that they were narrowly tailored and removed only commercially sensitive information intended to protect confidential business interests. The parties’ proposed redactions were therefore granted.

The Clerk of Court was directed to maintain ECF No. 189 under seal, viewable only to selected parties, and to maintain ECF No. 193-1 as the publicly viewable redacted version. For redactions designated highly confidential under the protective order only until the end of the 30-day review period after final transcripts become available, the parties must notify the Court by joint letter when that period ends. If they seek to keep those materials sealed afterward, their letter must state the basis for doing so.