Ladner v. RentGrow Incorporated

District Court, D. Arizona·Decided October 19, 2023·No. 2:23-cv-00867·Unknown

Opinion

WO

Victoria Nicole Ladner, Case No. CV 23-867-PHX-JAT Plaintiff, PROTECTIVE ORDER v. RentGrow, Inc. and TransUnion Rental Screening Solutions, Inc., Defendants. The Parties have renewed their Joint Motion for Entry of Stipulated Protective Order. (Doc. 33). This second request provides more specificity and justification than the parties’ previously rejected request. (Docs. 19, 21). However, the renewed request still represents an unrealistic view of a public court. To summarize, the following are the categories of documents sought to be protected in the parties’ motion: RentGrow’s policies and procedures relating to compliance with § 1681e(b) and for ensuring accurate consumer reports. (Doc. 33 at 4). RentGrow’s employee training materials and training materials provided to: vendors, agents, third parties, and independent contractors. (Id.). RentGrow’s procedures used in this particular case. (Id.).1

1 These 3 categories were summarized as RentGrow’s procedures for merging, reviewing, assembling consumer information, as well as the processes for reviewing, processing, responding to, and resolving consumer disputes. (Doc. 33 at 4-5). RentGrow’s agreements with consumer reporting agencies such as TransUnion Rental Screening Solutions, Inc. (Id. at 5). Information on RentGrow’s “database” and “system.” (Id. at 6) Information RentGrow used in Plaintiff’s particular case, including: documents concerning any reinvestigation conducted concerning any information about Plaintiff, any responses, notes, screens, logs, internal memoranda, correspondence, or supporting documentation. (Id.). And, Plaintiff’s “personal” and “private” information. (Id.). The proposed protective order seeks to protect all of the above information both during discovery and at trial. (Doc. 33-2 at 2). This action is a basic Fair Credit Reporting Act case stemming from some information RentGrow reported about Plaintiff on a tenant screening report. (Doc. 1 at 2). In short summary, Plaintiff claims RentGrow violated the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act by giving Plaintiff’s potential landlord a report which “inaccurately stated that Plaintiff had a civil judgment for eviction against her when the judgment had been expressly vacated, dismissed and the record sealed and prohibited from distribution to third parties or the public pursuant to state law designed to protect parties from just such disclosures.” (Id.) The protective order proposed by the parties seeks to protect every aspect of RentGrow’s operations, both generally and specifically as to the action taken with respect to this particular Plaintiff. It also seeks to protect all of RentGrow’s internal documents and external documents with business partners, service providers and clients. Further it seeks to protect Plaintiff’s personal and private information, which depending on someone’s perspective could be everything on a credit report. 2 Thus, as far as the Court can discern, the parties seek to mark as confidential every single item of discovery in this case, including deposition and trial testimony.

2 Notwithstanding what is in the parties’ motion itself, the proposed protective order submitted for the Court’s signature does not protect any of Plaintiff’s information. (Doc. 33-2 at 4). Finally, the parties stipulate that before any such information is presented to the Court, either by motion or at trial, the party seeking to use the material must file a motion to seal. (Doc. 33-2 at 6). Thus, at bottom, the foregoing shows the parties seemingly seek to conduct this entire case under seal. As mentioned above, this is a routine Fair Credit Reporting Act case. The concerns raised by the parties would apply equally to nearly every case, namely: a business has information or processes it believes its competitors would value and an individual has personal information they would prefer not be made public. But conducting every case with these concerns under seal runs afoul of the basic concept of a public court system. “It is clear that the courts of this country recognize a general right to inspect and copy public records and documents, including judicial records and documents.” Nixon v. Warner Commnc’ns, Inc., 435 U.S. 589, 597 (1978). Following the Supreme Court’s lead, “we start with a strong presumption in favor of access to court records.” Foltz v. State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co., 331 F.3d 1122, 1135 (9th Cir.2003). The presumption of access is “based on the need for federal courts, although independent—indeed, particularly because they are independent—to have a measure of accountability and for the public to have confidence in the administration of justice.” United States v. Amodeo (Amodeo II ), 71 F.3d 1044, 1048 (2d Cir.1995); see also Valley Broad. Co. v. U.S. Dist. Court— D. Nev., 798 F.2d 1289, 1294 (9th Cir.1986) (explaining that the presumption of public access “promot[es] the public’s understanding of the judicial process and of significant public events”).

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Ladner v. RentGrow Incorporated, (D. Ariz. 2023).

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