M.S. v. Shoreline School District

The Honorable Kymberly K. Evanson

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 8 WESTERN DISTRICT OF WASHINGTON AT SEATTLE A.S. a minor by and through his parents M.S. Case No.: 2:24-cv-01360-KKE and T.S., 12 Plaintiffs, ORDER GRANTING STIPULATED MOTION TO FILE UNREDACTED vs. ADMINISTRATIVE RECORD UNDER SEAL SHORELINE SCHOOL DISTRICT, Defendant.

17 This matter comes before the Court on the parties stipulated motion to file the administrative record under seal. The Court starts from the position that there is “a strong presumption in favor of access to court records.” Foltz v. State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co., 331 F.3d 1122, 1135 (9th Cir. 2003). To overcome this presumption, there must be a “compelling reason” for sealing that is “sufficient to outweigh the public’s interest in disclosure.” Kamakana v. City & County of Honolulu, 447 F.3d 1172, 1179 (9th Cir. 2006). Compelling reasons exist in this case: the administrative record contains a student’s private educational and medical information, and Plaintiffs’ interest in keeping that information confidential outweighs the public’s interest in disclosure. See id. Given the volume of the record and the prevalence of sensitive information,

1 of 2 | ORDER GRANTING STIP. MOTION TO SEAL Cedar Law PLLC redacting this confidential information would be overly burdensome and would render the remaining record difficult to understand–and thus far less valuable–to the public.

3 Accordingly, the Court GRANTS the Parties’ stipulated motion and DIRECTS the Clerk to maintain the administrative record under seal once it is filed.

5 Dated this 16th day of October, 2024.

A Kymberly K. Evanson 9 United States District Judge Presented by: CEDAR LAW PLLC By: __s/ Ryan Ford________ Ryan P. Ford, WSBA # 50628 Luke Hackenberg, WSBA #58748 Attorneys for Plaintiffs

PORTER FOSTER RORICK LLP By: __s/ Sharan Singh________ Lynette M. Baisch, WSBA #37180 Sharan Preet Singh , WSBA # 61428 Attorneys for Defendant

2 of 2 | ORDER GRANTING STIP. MOTION TO SEAL Cedar Law PLLC