Imber v. Lackey

Opinion

BRANDON IMBER, individually and on Case No. 1:22-cv-00004-HBK behalf of all other similarly situated, ORDER GRANTING REQUEST TO SEAL Plaintiff, (Doc. No. 162) v. BRUCE LACKEY, PAM LACKEY, SCHARTON, THE ADMINISTRATIVE BUSINESS EMPLOYEE STOCK PAREDES, RICH ROUSH, DEL AND RITCHIE TRUCKING SERVICE Defendants. On June 16, 2025, Plaintiff filed a request to seal a 2023 Valuation Report and portions of Plaintiff’s reply brief regarding his Motion for Preliminary Approval of Class Action Settlement (Doc. No. 158). (Doc. No. 162). Defendants did not submit an opposition under Local Rule 141(c). The Court has considered the factors set forth in Oregonian Publishing Co. v. U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon, 920 F.2d 1462 (9th Cir. 1990). The Court finds that, for the reasons stated in the Plaintiff’s request, sealing the 2023 Valuation Report and portions of the reply brief serves a compelling interest. See, e.g., Hefler v. Wells Fargo & Co., 2018 WL 4207245 (N.D. Cal. Sept. 4, 2018) (collecting cases) (“There are compelling reasons to keep this information confidential in order to prevent third parties from utilizing it for the improper purpose of obstructing the settlement and obtaining higher payouts.”). The Court further finds that, in the absence of closure, the compelling interests identified by Plaintiff would be harmed. In light of the public filing of its Notice to Seal, the Court further finds that there are no additional alternatives to sealing the 2023 Valuation Report and portions of the reply brief that would adequately protect the compelling interests identified by the Plaintiff. Accordingly, it is ORDERED: 1. Plaintiff's unopposed request to seal documents (Doc. No. 162) is GRANTED. 2. Within five (5) days of this Order, Plaintiff shall provide an electronic copy of the document to be sealed to the Clerk of Court by email to: ApprovedSealed @caed.uscourts.gov, at which time the Clerk of Court will file the documents under seal. See Local Rule 141(e)(2)q). ' | Dated: _ June 24, 2025 Mihaw. Wh. foareh Zaskth HELENA M. BARCH-KUCHTA UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE