Oliner v. Kontrabecki

Defendant appealed the district court's order denying the parties' joint request to seal the entire record of bankruptcy proceedings before the district court. The parties sought to seal the record of proceedings on an interlocutory appeal taken from the bankruptcy court, which the district court dismissed for lack of jurisdiction. The district court rejected the parties' argument that the "good cause" standard applied and held that the "compelling reasons" standard governed the decision to seal the record of the proceedings. The court agreed, concluding that the rationale for the "good cause" standard did not apply in this case and that the district court properly invoked the "compelling reasons" standard in considering the sealing request. In this case, the only reasons provided for sealing the records - to avoid embarrassment or annoyance to defendant and to prevent an undue burden on his professional endeavors - were not "compelling," particularly because the proceedings had been a matter of public record since at least 2004. Defendant has not pointed to any compelling reasons that overcome the strong presumption in favor of maintaining public access to court records. Accordingly, the court affirmed the judgment of the district court. View "Oliner v. Kontrabecki" on Justia Law