Suzanne Dobry v. SharkNinja Operating LLC

Summary

The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan denied Plaintiff Suzanne Dobry’s motion to seal, granted her motion to compel, and struck her reply brief for failure to comply with local font and page-limit rules. The court ordered SharkNinja Operating LLC to produce the names and telephone numbers of customers who had reported similar exploding-pitcher incidents, subject to the existing protective order. The order was entered by Magistrate Judge Anthony P. Patti on December 17, 2025.

Holdings

1. The motion to seal was denied because neither party overcame the strong presumption of public access to judicial records or demonstrated, on a document-by-document and line-by-line basis, compelling reasons for nondisclosure.
2. The names and telephone numbers of customers who informed SharkNinja of prior similar exploding-pitcher incidents were discoverable because they were relevant to the claims and affirmative defenses and proportional to the needs of the case.
3. The reply brief was stricken because it used a font substantially smaller than the required 14-point font and, if corrected, would exceed the page limit for reply briefs.

Questions Presented

1. Whether plaintiff established sufficiently compelling reasons to seal the redacted exhibits filed with the court.
2. Whether the names and telephone numbers of customers who reported prior similar exploding-pitcher incidents were relevant, proportional, and discoverable under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(b)(1).
3. Whether plaintiff's reply brief should be stricken for violating the Eastern District of Michigan's formatting and page-limit rules.

Disposition

other