In re Google Play Consumer Antitrust Litigation

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 6 In re Google Play Store Antitrust Litigation Case No. 21-md-02981-JD

ORDER RE MOTION TO STAY AND

RENEWED APPLICATION TO SEAL 10

In a prior order, the Court denied the Google defendants’ request to seal portions of the four complaints, which would have limited the public’s right of access to the court proceedings in this high-profile multidistrict antitrust litigation. Dkt. No. 79. The reasons for the denial were straightforward. “[J]udicial records are public documents almost by definition, and the public is entitled to access by default.” Kamakana v. City and County of Honolulu, 447 F.3d 1172, 1180 (9th Cir. 2006) (citation omitted); see also Center for Auto Safety v. Chrysler Group, LLC, 809 F.3d 1092, 1096 (9th Cir. 2016) (when considering a request to seal, “we start with a strong presumption in favor of access to court records.”) (quotation omitted). As the party seeking to seal the complaints, Google had “the burden of overcoming this strong presumption by…