UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 10 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, and the No. 2:12-CV-01699-KJM-EFB STATES OF CALIFORNIA, et al., ex rel. LOYD F. SCHMUCKLEY, JR., Plaintiff, ORDER v. RITE AID CORPORATION, Defendant. 17
I. INTRODUCTION Defendants filed two motions requesting the court seal ECF Nos. 320 and 322 on July 28, 2020. ECF Nos. 325, 326. The court addresses each of these requests here, and for the following reasons DENIES both requests. II. LEGAL STANDARD “[T]he courts of this country recognize a general right to inspect and copy public records and documents, including judicial records and documents.” Nixon v. Warner Communications, 435 U.S. 589, 597 (1978) (footnotes omitted). While “the right to inspect and copy judicial records is not absolute,” access in civil cases is properly denied for clearly justifiable reasons: to protect against “‘gratif[ication of] private spite or promot[ion of] public scandal,’” or to preclude court dockets…