ACLU Lawsuit - Motion to File - American Foreign Service Association

Case 8:12-cv-02297-AW Document 2 Filed 08/02/12 Page 1 of 4
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF MARYLAND
_____________________________
)
SENIOR EXECUTIVES )
ASSOCIATION, et al. )
)
Plaintiffs, )
)
v. ) Civil Action No. 8:12-cv-2297
)
UNITED STATES, et al. )
)
Defendants. )
_____________________________ )
PLAINTIFFS’ MOTION FOR LEAVE TO FILE COMPLAINT
WITHOUT LISTING INDIVIDUAL PLAINTIFFS’ HOME ADDRESSES
Plaintiffs hereby move for leave to file their complaint without listing individual
Plaintiffs’ home addresses in the caption. They respectfully request permission to show the
address of their attorneys instead.
Argument
Local Civil Rule 102.2(a) provides, in part, that the case caption of the original complaint
“shall contain the names and addresses of all parties and the county of residence of any Maryland
party.” In this case, however, the individual Plaintiffs fear that having their home addresses on
the public record, available to anyone in the world with access to PACER, may endanger their
safety and the safety of their families.
As the Complaint in this action shows, Plaintiffs are individual senior executive officials
within the Executive Branch of the federal government in positions that obligate them to make
financial disclosure reports under the Ethics in Government Act, 5 U.S.C. app. § 101 et seq.
(“EGA”), and the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge (“STOCK”) Act, P.L. 112-105,
126 Stat 291. They are concerned with keeping their personal financial information protected

Case 8:12-cv-02297-AW Document 2 Filed 08/02/12 Page 2 of 4
from Internet publication. Three of the Plaintiffs, especially concerned with keeping their
identities private, have filed using the name “Jane Doe.”
Should Plaintiffs’ motion for a preliminary injunction be denied, or granted and reversed
on appeal, or should final judgment in this case be for the Defendants, the presence of Plaintiffs’
home addresses in the caption of this case would make even easier and more likely some of the
very harms — identity theft and financial fraud — that they are filing this lawsuit to try to
prevent. It would be ironic, and unjustified, to require them to take those risks as a condition of
seeking judicial relief.
This Court recognizes the need to protect the privacy interests of litigants. For example,
the Court’s Privacy Policy for Civil Cases provides that, “Social Security numbers, financial
account numbers, dates of birth and names of minor children not parties to a case are personal
identifiers which unless otherwise ordered by the court should not appear in public court
documents [with certain exceptions] regardless of whether the documents are filed electronically
or in paper format.” Like that information, public disclosure of a home address can result in a
serious invasion of privacy.
The same general principles as filing using pseudonyms should apply here. In Doe v.
Von Eschenbach, 2007 WL 1848013 (D.D.C. June 27, 2007) (No. 06-2131 (RMC)), the D.C.
Circuit explained that the use of pseudonyms “has been permitted where the issues are ‘matters
of a sensitive and highly personal nature . . . .’” Id. at *1 (quoting Southern Methodist Univ.
Ass’n of Women Law Students v. Wynne & Jaffe, 599 F.2d 707, 712–13 (5th Cir. 1979)). The
Court “balance[s] the presumption of openness with [the] plaintiff’s privacy rights.” Id., at *2.
In the circumstances of this case, that balance weighs in favor of keeping Plaintiffs’ home
address off the public record.
2

Case 8:12-cv-02297-AW Document 2 Filed 08/02/12 Page 3 of 4
Finally, there is no risk of prejudice to the opposing parties here. Plaintiffs’ counsel will
provide Plaintiffs’ home addresses to Defendants’ counsel if they request it, subject to a
protective order against public disclosure. Likewise, Plaintiffs’ home addresses can be filed
under seal if the Court so directs.
Conclusion
For these reasons the motion should be granted. A proposed order, permitting individual
Plaintiffs to file their Complaint using their attorneys’ address in the caption, is filed herewith.
Dated: August 2, 2012
Respectfully Submitted,
/s/ Daron T. Carreiro_____________________________
Jack McKay (D. Md. Bar No. 05628)
Thomas G. Allen
Daron T. Carreiro (D. Md. Bar No. 18075)
Kristen E. Baker
Vernon C. Thompson, Jr.
PILLSBURY WINTHROP SHAW PITTMAN LLP
2300 N Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20037
Office: (202) 663-8000
Fax: (202) 663-8007
Email: jack.mckay@pillsburylaw.com
thomas.allen@pillsburylaw.com
daron.carreiro@pillsburylaw.com
kristen.baker@pillsburylaw.com
vernon.thompson@pillsburylaw.com
Counsel for Plaintiffs
/s/ Arthur B. Spitzer____________________________
Arthur B. Spitzer (D. Md. Bar No. 08628)
American Civil Liberties Union of the Nation’s Capital
4301 Connecticut Avenue, N.W., Suite 434
Washington, DC 20008
Office: (202) 457-0800
Fax: (202) 457-0805
Email: art@aclu-nca.org
Counsel for Plaintiffs
3

Case 8:12-cv-02297-AW Document 2 Filed 08/02/12 Page 4 of 4
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I hereby certify that on the 2nd day of August, 2012, a copy of the foregoing Motion for
Leave to File Complaint Without Listing Individual Plaintiffs’ Home Addresses was filed
electronically using this Court’s ECF system and will be mailed via first class mail, postage
prepaid, to the following:
United States of America
c/o United States Department of Justice
950 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20530
Eric H. Holder, Jr.
Attorney General of the United States
United States Department of Justice
950 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20530
Rod J. Rosenstein
United States Attorney for the District of Maryland
36 South Charles Street, 4th Floor
Baltimore, MD 21201
Don W. Fox
Acting Director of the Office of Government Ethics
1201 New York Avenue NW, Suite 500
Washington, D.C. 20005
/s/ Daron T. Carreiro_____________________________
Jack McKay (D. Md. Bar No. 05628)
Thomas G. Allen
Daron T. Carreiro (D. Md. Bar No. 18075)
Kristen E. Baker
Vernon C. Thompson, Jr.
PILLSBURY WINTHROP SHAW PITTMAN LLP
2300 N Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20037
Office: (202) 663-8000
Fax: (202) 663-8007
Email: jack.mckay@pillsburylaw.com
thomas.allen@pillsburylaw.com
daron.carreiro@pillsburylaw.com
kristen.baker@pillsburylaw.com
vernon.thompson@pillsburylaw.com
Counsel for Plaintiffs
/s/ Arthur B. Spitzer____________________________
Arthur B. Spitzer (D. Md. Bar No. 08628)
American Civil Liberties Union of the Nation’s Capital
4301 Connecticut Avenue, N.W., Suite 434
Washington, DC 20008
Office: (202) 457-0800
Fax: (202) 457-0805
Email: art@aclu-nca.org
Counsel for Plaintiffs

Case 8:12-cv-02297-AW Document 2-1 Filed 08/02/12 Page 1 of 1
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF MARYLAND
_____________________________
)
SENIOR EXECUTIVES )
ASSOCIATION, et al. )
)
Plaintiffs, )
)
v. ) Civil Action No. 8:12-cv-2297
)
UNITED STATES, et al. )
)
Defendants. )
_____________________________ )
[Proposed] ORDER
Upon consideration of Plaintiffs’ motion for leave to file Complaint without listing
individual Plaintiffs’ home addresses, it is hereby ORDERED that the motion is granted.
Plaintiffs’ Complaint may be filed using the address of their attorneys in the caption.
Date: ____________________
__________________________
United States District Judge