The opinion
ELECTRONICALLY FILED
>I02. Feb 23, 2022
=
DATE FILED: comay
Via ECF
Honorable Stewart D. Aaron
United States Magistrate Judge
Daniel Patrick Moynihan Courthouse
500 Pearl Street
New York, NY 10007
Re: Allianz Global Inv’rs GmbH, et al. v. Bank of Am. Corp., et al., 18-cv-10364
Dear Judge Aaron:
Pursuant to Section II.B.3 of the Court’s Individual Practices, we write to seek leave to file
under seal an unredacted version of the parties’ joint letter regarding discovery issues pursuant to
the Court’s January 11, 2022 Order. The letter has been publicly filed with excerpts of
communications redacted. See ECF No. 1002. In accordance with Your Honor’s Individual
Practices, an unredacted version of the letter will be filed contemporaneously with this motion,
accessible to counsel of record for all parties in this action.
Defendants’ portion of the joint letter contains information excerpted from internal
BlackRock documents. BlackRock previously designated this material as Confidential under the
Protective Order in this case because it contains sensitive commercial information about their FX
operations. BlackRock has reviewed the letter and where possible have suggested redactions
designed to balance the public right of access with their privacy interests.
Although the Second Circuit has held that a strong presumption of public access generally
applies to judicial documents, it is well-established that documents submitted in connection with
non-dispositive discovery matters receive a lesser presumption of public access. See, e.g.,
Ashmore v. CGE, Inc., No. 11-CV-8611, 2020 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 22668, *3 (S.D.N.Y. Feb. 7, 2020)
(quoting Brown v. Maxwell, 929 F.3d 41, 53 (2d Cir. 2019)). It is similarly well-recognized that
confidential treatment of judicial documents is justified when “closure is essential to preserve
higher values and is narrowly tailored to serve that interest.” Lugosch v. Pyramid Co. of
Onondaga, 435 F.3d 110, 120 (2d Cir. 2006). Several factors, including “privacy interests” and
“business secrecy”, can “outweigh the presumption of public access” and justify sealing. Hanks
v. Voya Retirement Ins. & Annuity Co., 2020 WL 5813448, at *1 (S.D.N.Y. Sept. 30, 2020).
Here, BlackRock seeks to redact only those few portions of the letter that would disclose
its confidential business information. Accordingly, the parties respectfully request that the letter
and its exhibits remain in redacted form as currently filed on the docket and in unredacted form
under seal.
03531-00008/13212601.1
Respectfully,
/s/ Tibor L. Nagy, Jr. /s/ Anthony P. Alden
Tibor L. Nagy, Jr. Anthony P. Alden
DONTZIN NAGY & FLEISSIG LLP QUINN EMANUEL URQUHART &
980 Madison Avenue, 2nd Floor SULLIVAN, LLP
New York, New York 10075 865 S. Figueroa Street, 10th Floor
(212) 717-2900 Los Angeles, CA 90015
tibor@dnfllp.com (213) 443-3000
anthonyalden@quinnemanuel.com
Counsel for Defendants JPMorgan
Chase & Co., JPMorgan Chase Bank, Counsel for Plaintiffs
N.A. and J.P. Morgan Securities LLC
cc: All counsel of record (via ECF)
The Court being satisfied that the requested sealing is appropriate under the standards articulated in
Lugosch v. Pyramid Co. of Onondaga, 435 F.3d 110 (2d Cir. 2006), the request to seal is GRANTED.
Dated: 2/25/2022
03531-00008/13212601.1