Jane Doe J. B., et al. v. Roblox Corporation, et al.

4 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 5 NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA JANE DOE J. B., et al., Case No. 26-cv-00230-SK 8 Plaintiffs, ORDER GRANTING MOTION TO 9 v. PROCEED UNDER A PSEUDONYM 10 ROBLOX CORPORATION, et al., Regarding Docket No. 2 11 Defendants.

12 Before the Court is Plaintiffs Jane Doe J.B. and Jane Doe E.B.’s motion to proceed under a pseudonym and Complaint. (Dkt. Nos. 1-2.) Plaintiff Jane Doe E.B., an 11-year-old, alleges that she was sexually groomed, harassed, and exploited by a “child predator” while using Defendants Roblox Corporation and Discord, Inc.’s (“Defendants”) applications. (Dkt. No. 1.) In their motion, Plaintiffs argue that they have a substantial privacy interest in guarding sensitive and highly personal information regarding the sexual harassment and exploitation suffered by a minor.

18 (Dkt. No. 2, p. 2.) Jane Doe J.B.—Jane Doe E.B.’s guardian—seeks to proceed anonymously because “not allowing [her] to proceed under [a] pseudonym will inevitably, and swiftly, result in the identification of her minor child.” (Id.) Where, as here, “anonymity is necessary to preserve privacy in a matter of sensitive and highly personal nature,” permitting Plaintiff to proceed anonymously is appropriate. Does I thru XXIII v. Advanced Textile Corp., 214 F.3d 1058, 1067 (9th Cir. 2000). “With regard to allegations of sexual assault or sexual harassment in particular, courts in the Ninth Circuit have found that allowing victims to proceed anonymously serves a strong public interest in protecting the identities of sexual assault victims so that other victims will not be deterred from reporting such crimes.” Heineke v. Santa Clara Univ., No. 17-cv-05285-LHK, 2017 WL 6026248, at *22 (N.D. Cal. Dec. 5, 2017) (citations and internal quotation marks omitted). These concerns are heightened where, as here, the plaintiff is a young child. Due to the highly sensitive nature of || Plaintiffs allegations and her particular vulnerability, the Court finds that there is ample || justification for allowing Plaintiff to proceed under the pseudonym “JANE DOE E.B.” and for || allowing her guardian to proceed under the pseudonym “JANE DOE J.B.”

5 IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that Plaintiff may proceed herein under the pseudonym || “JANE DOE E.B.” and Plaintiffs guardian may proceed herein under the pseudonym “JANE || DOEJ.B.” The parties shall refer to Plaintiffs by their pseudonyms in all filings and public proceedings. In addition, the parties shall redact personally identifying information regarding Plaintiffs from all filings consistent with Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 5.2. However, both Jane 10 Doe E.B. and Jane Doe J.B. shall disclose their identities to Defendants once Defendants are Wl served and appear in this action.

IT IS SO ORDERED. g Dated: January 20, 2026 SALLIE KIM B15 United States Magistrate Judge = 17 Z 18