Buff City Soap LLC v. Bynum

Opinion

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF MISSISSIPPI OXFORD DIVISION

BUFF CITY SOAP, LLC, ET AL. PLAINTIFFS

V. CIVIL ACTION NO. 3:20-cv-55-NBB-RP

MAGEN BYNUM, ET AL. DEFENDANTS

ORDER TO SEAL This matter comes before the court on numerous motions to seal filed by the parties in this action. [Docket 210, 212, 214, 216, 228, 232, 245, 246, 248]. Having considered the motions and authorities submitted, the court will grant said motions. The public has a general right to inspect and copy public records including judicial records and documents. Nixon v. Warner Communications., Inc., 435 U.S. 589, 597 (1978). The decision whether to order judicial records sealed is committed to the sound discretion of the district court, which must “balance the public’s common-law right of access against the interest favoring nondisclosure.” SEC v. Van Waeyenberghe, 990 F. 2d 845, 849 (5th Cir. 1993). In doing so, the court must apply a “presumption in favor of the public’s common law right of access.” Id. Here, the documents at issue allegedly contain a substantial amount of interspersed confidential and non-confidential material. In order to ensure the appropriate protection for the businesses, including third parties, whose material is included in these documents, the court finds the documents should be temporarily sealed until briefing is completed on December 21, 2021, at which time the parties are ORDERED to notify the court of any restrictions which may be lifted. Based on the foregoing premises, the parties’ motions to seal are GRANTED. The parties are ORDERED to conventionally file the documents sealed by this order (and file a Notice of Conventional Filing) and to email copies of the sealed, unredacted documents directly to the chambers email address: Judge_Biggers@msnd.uscourts.gov. It is so ORDERED AND ADJUDGED, This the 7th day of December, 2021.

/s/ Neal Biggers NEAL B. BIGGERS, JR. UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE