Opinion
NO. CIV. S-94-671 LKK/GGH.
September 7, 2011
ORDER
On August 31, 2011, plaintiffs filed a Notice of Request to Seal Documents, ECF No. 1687. In the request, plaintiffs request that the following documents be filed under seal: Declaration of Ernest Galvan In Support of Plaintiffs' Motion to Enforce Injunction and Prohibit Implementation of § 5.3 of Proposition 9 and the accompanying Exhibits A-G, which consist of CDCR forms pertaining to the identification of individual parolees' disabilities and effective communications needs and accommodations provided to parolees in the revocation process. Plaintiffs contend that the documents include confidential information identifying inmates. Plaintiffs have concurrently filed redacted copies of the documents.
When a party seeks to seal a document that is part of the judicial record, it must show "compelling reasons" for doing so.Pintos v. Pac. Creditors Ass'n, 605 F.3d 665, 678 (9th Cir. 2010). See also Kamakana v. City County of Honolulu, 447 F.3d 1172, 1178 (9th Cir. 2006); Foltz v. State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co., 331 F.3d 1122, 1135 (9th Cir. 2003). "A party seeking to seal judicial records must show that `compelling reasons supported by specific factual findings . . . outweigh the general history of access and the public policies favoring disclosure.'"Pintos, id. (quoting Kamakana, 447 F.3d at 1178).
A lower, `good cause' standard is applied when a party seeks to seal non-dispositive motions and discovery documents attached to them. "The public's interest in accessing dispositive materials does not apply with equal force to nondispositive materials. In light of the weaker public interest in non-dispositive materials, we apply the `good cause' standard when parties wish to keep them under seal." Pintos, 605 F.3d at 678. redacted copies of the documents.
For the foregoing reasons, the Court tentatively GRANTS plaintiffs' application. Plaintiffs are cautioned, however, that this sealing is tentative. Kamakana, 447 F.3d at 1186. The court will revisit whether these documents should be permanently sealed at a later time, when it is possible to perform the fact specific analysis required by Foltz.
IT IS SO ORDERED.