Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-casd-3_17-cv-01997/USCOURTS-casd-3_17-cv-01997-2/pdf.json

Nature of Suit Code: 440
Nature of Suit: Other Civil Rights
Cause of Action: 42:1983cv Civil Rights Act - Civil Action for Deprivation of Rights

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17-cv-1997-BAS-AGS 

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 

SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 

GAVIN B. DAVIS, 

Plaintiff,

v. 

FEDERAL BUREAU OF 

INVESTIGATION, et al., 

Defendants.

 Case No.: 17-cv-1997-BAS-AGS 

ORDER DENYING MOTION FOR 

EARLY DISCOVERY (ECF No. 35) 

 

Plaintiff seeks leave to serve a third-party Rule 45 subpoena prior to the Rule 26(f) 

Conference. See ECF No. 35. Ordinarily, a party may not seek discovery “from any 

source” prior to the Rule 26(f) conference. Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(d)(1); Malibu Media, LLC v. 

Doe, No. 16cv444 GPC (BGS), 2016 WL 1618227, at *3-4 (S.D. Cal. Apr. 22, 2016);

Malibu Media, LLC v. John Does 1 through 16, No. 12-cv-1847-AJB (DHB), 2012 WL 

3809128, at *3-5 (S.D. Cal. Sept. 4, 2012). In order to justify issuance of an early subpoena, 

plaintiff must show “good cause.” See Malibu Media, 2016 WL 1618227, at *2. 

Here, plaintiff does not seek information to identify the defendants and does not 

provide good cause for the requested early discovery. See Gillespie v. Civiletti, 629 F.2d 

637, 642 (9th Cir. 1980) (allowing the issuance of early subpoenas to identify “Doe” 

defendants). Instead, Plaintiff seeks sixteen categories of documents from a non-party – 

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17-cv-1997-BAS-AGS 

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the Office of the City Attorney. See ECF No. 35. The requests are extremely over-broad, 

vaguely worded, and seek significant amounts of irrelevant information. Id. Because 

Plaintiff has not established good cause for the broad requests, Plaintiff’s motion for early 

discovery is DENIED. 

IT IS SO ORDERED. 

Dated: 1/8/2019 

 

 

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