From Doe v. Amar, decided yesterday by Judge Sue Myerscough (C.D. Ill.), in response to my motion to unseal and depseudonymize; this is the case I blogged about in April:
[T]his case arises out of Mr. Doe's tenure as a student at the University of Illinois College of Law. On November 18, 2022, Mr. Doe filed this suit pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983, Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972. The Complaint alleged that Defendants—all officials, employees, and trustees of the University of Illinois—violated Mr. Doe's First, Fifth, and Fourteenth Amendment rights. According to Mr. Doe, Defendants did so by compelling him to meet with the University's Behavioral Intervention Team (BIT), retaliating against him for exercising his right of free speech, and subjecting him to an unconstitutionally vague code of conduct….
On December 5, this Court denied Mr. Doe's motion for a preliminary injunction in a written order. Noting that "the possibility of a sanction is not the same as its guarantee," the Court found that Mr. Doe's allegations of irreparable harm were too speculative to justify preliminary injunctive relief. Mr. Doe then moved for reconsideration of several of the Court's orders, including the Court's decision to deny Mr. Doe the ability to litigate under a pseudonym. The Court denied that motion, too. The Court found that "none of the reasons for sealing the record or proceeding pseudonymously were present in this case," and that in any event Mr. Doe "had waived the request to keep [his identity] sealed because he … referred to himself" in his pleadings and exhibits.
On December 7, Mr. Doe filed a notice of interlocutory appeal as to the Court's order on his motion for injunctive relief. While that appeal was pending, the Illinois Supreme Court imposed a one-year suspension on Mr. Doe's attorney, Justin K. Schwartz, for neglecting client matters and keeping unearned fees. Mr. Doe then retained new counsel. In March 2023, the parties "engaged in mediation … [and] reached a settlement agreement and mutual release of claims."
On April 19, the parties jointly moved to "seal the Court record for this matter in its entirety and replace Plaintiff's name with 'John Doe.'" In the alternative, the parties asked that the Court "reconsider its denial of Plaintiff's Motion to Proceed Under Pseudonym, permitting pseudonym treatment for 'John Doe,' and allowing Plaintiff to file redacted exhibits." The Court granted the former request in a text order dated April 28, 2023. As a result, the docket is now wholly sealed, and the caption renders Plaintiff's name as "John Doe."
On May 2, the parties made a similar request of the Seventh Circuit. The Seventh Circuit denied their motion the next day.
That court's two-sentence order read as follows: "Retroactive anonymity is an oxymoron and it is never appropriate to seal entire appeals. The Supreme Court held in U.S. Bancorp Mortgage Co. v. Bonner Mall Partnership, 513 U.S. 18 (1994), that settlement does not justify vacatur."
The court concluded that I had standing to intervene, to vindicate my "right of access as a member of both 'the press and the general public.'" And it reconsidered its earlier grant of pseudonymity and decision to seal, though it allowed redactions from several exhibits:
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