Case 2:85-cv-04544-DMG-AGR Document 507 Filed 10/26/18 Page 1 of 4 Page ID #:25350

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JOSEPH H. HUNT
Assistant Attorney General
Civil Division
WILLIAM C. PEACHEY
Director, District Court Section
Office of Immigration Litigation
WILLIAM C. SILVIS
Assistant Director, District Court Section
Office of Immigration Litigation
SARAH B. FABIAN
Senior Litigation Counsel, District Court Section
Office of Immigration Litigation
P.O. Box 868, Ben Franklin Station
Washington, D.C. 20044
Tel: (202) 532-4824
Fax: (202) 305-7000
Email: sarah.b.fabian@usdoj.gov
Attorneys for Defendants

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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JENNY LISETTE FLORES; et al.,
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Plaintiffs,
v.
LORETTA E. LYNCH, Attorney
General of the United States; et al.,
Defendants.

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Case No. CV 85-4544
DEFENDANTS’ APPLICATION FOR
LEAVE TO FILE UNDER SEAL
EXHIBIT 3 TO THE DECLARATION
OF MARIVIC FIELDS
[Hon. Dolly M. Gee]

 Case 2:85-cv-04544-DMG-AGR Document 507 Filed 10/26/18 Page 2 of 4 Page ID #:25351

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Defendants submit this Application seeking leave from the Court to file under seal

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Exhibit 3 to the Declaration of Marivic Fields, submitted in support of their Reply in

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Support of Defendants’ Application for Partial Reconsideration of Order Appointing

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Special Master/Independent Monitor, pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 5.2(d)

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and Local Rule 79-5. As required by Local Rule 79-5.2.2(a), Defendants submit

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concurrently with this application the declaration of Sarah B. Fabian, a proposed order,

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and an unredacted copy of Exhibit 3. On October 26, 2018, counsel for Defendants

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contacted counsel for Plaintiffs, Carlos Holguin, by email regarding Defendants’

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proposed filing, and Mr. Holguin stated that Plaintiffs do not oppose Defendants’ request

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to file this Exhibit under seal.

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This Exhibit contain personally identifiable information and medical information

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regarding class members and their parents. Given the sensitive nature of the information

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in these records, there is compelling reason to file them under seal in order to protect the

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privacy of the individuals identified in these records. Defendants have publicly filed a

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redacted version of Exhibit 3 that redacts the personally identifiable information

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contained in this Exhibit.
ARGUMENT

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“[T]he courts of this country recognize a general right to inspect and copy public

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records and documents, including judicial records and documents.” Nixon v. Warner

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Communications, Inc., 435 U.S. 589, 597 & n.7 (1978); see also Foltz v. State Farm

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Mutual Auto Insurance Comp., 331 F.3d 1124, 1134 (9th Cir.2003). Accordingly, the

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default rule is that “[a] party seeking to seal a judicial record . . . bears the burden of

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overcoming this strong presumption [in favor of access to court records] by meeting the

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‘compelling reasons’ standard.” Kamakana v. City & Cty. Of Honolulu, 447 F.3d 1172,

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1176 (9th Cir. 2006).

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 Case 2:85-cv-04544-DMG-AGR Document 507 Filed 10/26/18 Page 3 of 4 Page ID #:25352

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Compelling reasons support sealing Exhibit 3. This Exhibit contains personally

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identifiable information and medical information regarding class members, and in some

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cases their parents. Courts have recognized individuals’ interest in the protection of such

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information. See Doe v. Beard, 63 F. Supp. 3d 1159, 1166 n.4 (C.D. Cal. 2014)

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(collecting cases). Defendants seek to seal the personally identifiable information in this

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Exhibit to protect the identity of these individuals and their related medical information.

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See Webster Groves Sch. Dist. v. Pulitzer Pub. Co., 898 F.2d 1371, 1376-77 (8th Cir.

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1990) (affirming decision to seal court records containing “testimony of psychologists

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and psychiatrists as to [child’s] mental status” to prevent child from being “stigmatized

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and humiliated”). Defendants have filed a public version of this Exhibit that redacts the

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personally identifiable information contained in these documents.

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DATED:

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October 26, 2018

Respectfully submitted,
JOSEPH H. HUNT
Acting Assistant Attorney General
Civil Division
WILLIAM C. PEACHEY
Director, District Court Section
Office of Immigration Litigation
WILLIAM C. SILVIS
Assistant Director, District Court Section
Office of Immigration Litigation

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/s/ Sarah B. Fabian
SARAH B. FABIAN
Senior Litigation Counsel
Office of Immigration Litigation
District Court Section
P.O. Box 868, Ben Franklin Station
Washington, D.C. 20044
Tel: (202) 532-4824
Fax: (202) 305-7000
Email: sarah.b.fabian@usdoj.gov

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Attorneys for Defendants

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 Case 2:85-cv-04544-DMG-AGR Document 507 Filed 10/26/18 Page 4 of 4 Page ID #:25353

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CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

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I hereby certify that on October 26, 2018, I served the foregoing pleading on all
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counsel of record by means of the District Clerk’s CM/ECF electronic filing system.

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Documents associated with this filing that are proposed to be filed under seal will further

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be served on Plaintiffs’ counsel of record by other means.

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/s/ Sarah B. Fabian
SARAH B. FABIAN
U.S. Department of Justice
District Court Section
Office of Immigration Litigation

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Attorney for Defendants