From Chief Judge James Boasberg (D.D.C.) yesterday in Doe v. NFL:
Plaintiff John Doe says that he is a Black man who has looked on with disgust, humiliation, and anxiety as the National Football League has discriminated against Black quarterbacks and coaching candidates and meted out harsher discipline to Black players.
He has finally had enough. So he is suing the league for violating the DC Human Rights Act, the DC Consumer Protection Act, DC's law barring businesses from racial discrimination, Title VII, and the Sherman and Clayton Acts, as well as negligence and intentional infliction of emotional distress. He wants declaratory and injunctive relief, plus $100 million in compensatory damages and $500 million in punitive damages. And he now moves to sue under a pseudonym. The Court will deny the Motion….
Generally, a complaint must identify the plaintiffs. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 10(a); [Local Civil Rules] 5.1(c)(1), 11.1. That requirement reflects the "presumption in favor of disclosure [of litigants' identities], which stems from the 'general public interest in the openness of governmental processes,' and, more specifically, from the tradition of open judicial proceedings." … Plaintiff has not shown that his privacy interests outweigh the public's presumptive and substantial interest in learning his identity.
