Strike 3 Holdings, LLC v. John Doe subscriber assigned IP Address 74.137.65.81

Summary

The United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio grants Strike 3 Holdings, LLC leave to serve a Rule 45 subpoena on the Internet service provider associated with a specified IP address before the Rule 26(f) conference. The order limits the discovery to the defendant’s name and residential address, establishes notice and challenge procedures, and permits the defendant to proceed anonymously under a protective order for a limited time.

Holdings

1. The court may authorize expedited discovery before the Rule 26(f) conference when the requesting party demonstrates good cause, and Plaintiff demonstrated good cause to serve a narrowly tailored Rule 45 subpoena on the ISP to obtain the defendant's full name and residential address.
2. The court may issue a protective order under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(c) permitting a Doe defendant to proceed anonymously for a limited time when the circumstances make temporary anonymity reasonable; here, anonymity was permitted until discovery indicated that the defendant was the individual connected to the IP address.

Questions Presented

1. Whether Plaintiff demonstrated good cause for expedited discovery through a Rule 45 subpoena served before the Rule 26(f) conference.
2. Whether the court should issue a protective order permitting the Doe defendant to proceed anonymously for a limited time.

Disposition

other