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SDNY COURTHOUSE, May 5 – A crypto-currency investment being converted from crypto-trading to crypto mining was the subject of hearing on May 5 before Judge Victor Marrero of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, that this reporter covered. More on Patreon here.

   KDH Consulting Group LLC after investing in Iterative Capital Management L.P. had on April 27 gotten SDNY Chief Judge Colleen McMahon to sign a Temporary Restraining Order, as the Part I Judge. Chief Judge McMahon ruled that

"this newly-filed matter was wheeled out to The Hon Victor Marrero, who is not at the courthouse today. I have, therefore, been asked to consider whether to grant a letter motion asking permission to file certain TRO exhibits under seal. The right of public access to court documents is one of constitutional dimension. Therefore, a party seeking to file documents under seal has a heavy burden to demonstrate that there is some reason why the public should not have full access to all publicly-filed documents. The letter motion does not make nearly the sort of showing that would permit a federal district court to seal key portions of the record in support of the temporary restraining order sought by the plaintiffs. The letter says that certain documents relating to plaintiffs investment "may" contain confidential and sensitive information, and that Plaintiff "may" be bound by unspecified terms in a limited partnership agreement to keep certain matters about the business of the limited partnership confidential (an obligation, if it exists, that likely does not extend to wrongdoing by the general partner, but in the end that is not for me to decide). Were this matter assigned to me I would likely deny the motion. As I am sitting in Part I and looking at another judge's case, however, the prudent course is for me to direct that the exhibits be filed under seal for no more than ten days. During that period, the plaintiff must file with Judge Marrero copies of the relevant exhibits that are redacted, together with an explanation, for each redaction, of why it is that the information contained therein cannot be publicly disclosed - with citation to any agreements between the parties, and understanding that the court is not bound by any of those agreements. The assigned judge can then decide for himself, on a redaction by redaction basis, whether there is any material that should be filed permanently under seal. Judge Marrero will by that time be far more familiar with the record and better able than I am today to judge whether there is any merit in the instant letter motion. The motion is granted only to the extent of allowing the exhibits to be filed under seal until May 6, 2020. (Signed by Judge Colleen McMahon on 4/27/2020)."  

After that appropriately restrained and time limited order on May 5 KHD's lawyer Rika Khurdayan argued before Judge Marrero to continue the stay, and the sealing.

  Judge Marrero, after emphasizing how the federal courts are still dispensing justice, solicited argument on then denied to continue the stay, finding that the plaintiff had not shown any irreparable harm that would not be compensated by money, if it came to that.

On the question of sealing, he left it to the parties to meet and confer and agree to a protective order. Inner City Press will have more on this. For now, Plaintiff's reply and May 5 Minute Entry on Patreon here.

The case is KDH Consulting Group LLC v. Iterative Capital Management L.P. et al., 20-cv-03274 (Marrero).

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