FEDERAL COURT REFUSES TO SEAL DOCUMENTS DESPITE FACT THAT PROCEEDINGS WERE CONFIDENTIAL UNDER ARBITRAL RULES
A federal district court recently refused to seal various documents finding that the defendant failed to overcome the strong presumption in favor of access to judicial documents. The court rejected the defendant's argument that the weight of the presumption was low in light of the underlying arbitration proceedings, finding that “[t]he fact that arbitral proceedings in this case may have been confidential under arbitral rules or the arbitration clause at issue does not necessitate that they be kept confidential in these proceedings.” Ultimately, the court dismissed the matter finding that it did not have personal jurisdiction over the defendant, nor did it have quasi in rem jurisdiction over the property at issue. Sony Ericsson Mobile Comm. AB v. Delta Electronics Pub. Co. Ltd., Case No. 09-995 (USDC S.D.N.Y. Apr. 8, 2009).
This post written by John Black.
