Goodsell v. Teachers Health Trust, 2:23-cv-01510

Class action alleging Defendants (including Teachers Health Trust and various healthcare entities) failed to provide adequate healthcare under the Clark County School District group insurance program; multiple tort and contract claims asserted.
Intermountain Defendants (various DaVita/Intermountain entities) moved to file under seal a redacted motion to compel arbitration and Exhibits 1–8 attached to that motion (ECF No. 17).
No party responded to the sealing motion; the Court evaluated sealing under Ninth Circuit precedent (Kamakana and Center for Auto Safety).
The Court treated the motion to compel arbitration as dispositive for sealing purposes and therefore applied the "compelling reasons" standard.
Intermountain Defendants offered only that the exhibits were "confidential/proprietary" and subject to confidentiality provisions in the agreements; the Court found this conclusory and insufficient.
The Court denied the motion to seal but kept the documents under seal for 30 days, giving the Intermountain Defendants until Nov. 22, 2023 to file a renewed, narrowly tailored motion to seal; absent renewal, the documents will be unsealed.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Applicable sealing standard	Public access favored; court should apply controlling Ninth Circuit standards	Intermountain: seal exhibits as confidential/proprietary	Court: motion to compel is dispositive; apply "compelling reasons" standard
Is a motion to compel arbitration dispositive for sealing	N/A	Intermountain suggested sealing without contesting standard	Court held motion to compel arbitration is functionally dispositive and justifies the compelling-reasons standard
Sufficiency of defendants' justification to seal exhibits	N/A	Exhibits contain confidential/proprietary business information and confidentiality clauses	Court: conclusory claim of confidentiality insufficient; denied sealing motion
Procedural remedy and timing	N/A	N/A	Court deferred immediate unsealing, kept exhibits sealed 30 days, ordered renewal by specified date or documents will be unsealed

Kamakana v. City and County of Honolulu, 447 F.3d 1172 (9th Cir. 2006) (establishes "compelling reasons" standard to seal judicial records attached to dispositive motions)
Ctr. for Auto Safety v. Chrysler Group, LLC, 809 F.3d 1092 (9th Cir. 2016) (clarifies standards for sealing and distinguishes "good cause" vs "compelling reasons")
In re Roman Catholic Archbishop of Portland in Oregon, 661 F.3d 417 (9th Cir. 2011) (directs narrow tailoring and preference for redactions over full sealing)
Comedy Club, Inc. v. Improv W. Assocs., 553 F.3d 1277 (9th Cir. 2009) (describes limited federal review of arbitration awards)
Harmston v. City & County of San Francisco, 627 F.3d 1273 (9th Cir. 2010) (explains practical effect of arbitration in removing disputes from federal court)
Flam v. Flam, 788 F.3d 1043 (9th Cir. 2015) (endorses a functional approach to determine whether a motion is dispositive)