Right of Access
Judge Reverses Earlier Decision: Ex-Employee Can't Sue Planned Parenthood for Race Discrimination as a "Jane Doe"
[UPDATE 11/17/2015 10:21 am: Sorry, post title originally accidentally omitted the "as a 'Jane Doe'" (which of course is what this decision is about, see below); I've revised the title to include it. My apologies!]
No Pseudonymity for Former Federal Employees Suing Over Mass Firings
"The fact that disclosure means Plaintiffs 'could be deemed litigious' or that future employers 'may treat Plaintiffs' association with this litigation as a red flag' is not sufficient to allege a substantial privacy interest."
Can Vanderbilt Student Suspended for Alleged False Accusations Sue Vanderbilt Pseudonymously?
No, says, a District Court judge.
"If Doe Wishes to Use Judicial Proceedings" "to Seek Relief from … Defamat[ion],"
"he must do so under his true name and accept the risk that certain unflattering details may come to light over the course of the litigation."
"Plaintiff's Complaint Is Focused on Discrimination Related to Positionality Across Multiple Marginalized and Vulnerable Communities"
Not enough to get pseudonymity for plaintiff's employment discrimination claim, at least in S.D. Tex.
"Protecting Reputation Is Not Enough to Overcome Public Access" to Court Records
A lawyer tried to seal a copy of an earlier judge's order that had made certain claims about the lawyer.
Judge Denies Pseudonymity, Because Plaintiff's Sensitive Personal Information Wouldn't Likely Emerge in the Case—But then Disclosed That Information In Its Order
"[T]he heart of the district court's analysis in denying Brooks's initial motion was its conclusion that the litigation would not require Brooks to disclose the information that he had filed under seal. But, in some respects, the district court's order did just that—it put the information that Brooks had filed under seal on the public docket."
Are Plaintiffs More Eligible to Be Pseudonymous in Lawsuits Against the Government? Less Eligible?
Today's D.C. Circuit decision muddies the matter still further.
No Pseudonymity for Illinois Ex-Med Student Suing Under Title IX to Challenge Dismissal for Sexual Misconduct
The Seventh Circuit is generally much more hesitant than courts in other circuits to allow pseudonymity in such cases.
No Pseudonymity for Vexatious Litigant, Even When She Is Alleging Sexual Assault
"[A]llowing plaintiff to proceed under a pseudonym could enable her to evade judicial oversight under the vexatious litigant rules by obscuring her litigation history and identity across multiple cases."
Decisions to Restrict Online Access to Eviction Records Are for Judges, Not for Clerks of Court
So holds the Ohio Supreme Court.
No Sealing in Multi-Billionaire Leon Black's Attempt to Enforce Arbitration Subpoena
"Federal judges and their court staff are not legal pawns to be deployed in secret by wealthy disputants trying to get private answers to their problems."
"The Court Denies the Government's Attempt to Muzzle the Court"
"Unsealing the May 6 Order is essential for the public to see the government's overreach in searching cellphones without probable cause and [is essential for] publishing precedent as courts unpack future such requests."
Interesting Unsealing Decision in the Abrego Garcia Deportation Challenge
I haven't been closely following the many filings in the case, but I'm very glad the court is enforcing a fairly broad right of public access here.
Federal Court in New York Might Be the Hardest Court to Get Pseudonymity as a Sexual Assault Plaintiff,
which is to say the court that is the most in favor of public access to court records in such cases.
Arkansas S. Ct. Vacates Gag Order on Man Accused of Murdering His Teenage Daughter's Alleged Sex Abuser
The order also covered the man's family and public officials, as well as the lawyers in the case.
