Dental Monitoring SAS v. Align Technology, Inc.
Opinion
Trial Court Opinion
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
DENTAL MONITORING SAS, Plaintiff, No. C 22-07335 WHA
v.
ALIGN TECHNOLOGY, INC., ORDER RE PRE-SHOWDOWN
SEALING MOTIONS
Defendant.
15 This order addresses the administrative motions to seal filed before the “patent showdown” round of summary judgment motions (Dkt. Nos. 75, 79). There is a strong public policy in favor of openness in our court system and the public is entitled to know to whom we are providing relief (or not) and why. See Kamakana v. City & Cnty. of Honolulu, 447 F.3d 1172, 1178–80 (9th Cir. 2006). Consequently, access to motions and their attachments that are “more than tangentially related to the merits of a case” may be sealed only upon a showing of “compelling reasons” for sealing. Ctr. for Auto Safety v. Chrysler Grp., LLC, 809 F.3d 1092, 1101–02 (9th Cir. 2016). Filings that are only tangentially related to the merits may be sealed upon a lesser showing of “good cause.” Id. at 1097. The compelling…