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Best Practices

Court-Specific Procedures

Check the Judge’s website for court-specific procedures for Schedule A cases.

Sealing Documents

Sealing documents should be limited to the list of seller aliases and corresponding seller alias screenshots. Plaintiff’s name and corresponding intellectual property should not be redacted or otherwise hidden.

Infringement

The infringement should be clear and evident. The sellers’ use should not fall under the trademark or copyright fair use doctrines.

Number of Seller Aliases

The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure provide no numerical guidance on the number of infringement occurrences that can be joined under Rule 20. In general, less than 100 seller aliases per case balances judicial efficiency and allows practical case management.

Screenshot Evidence

The list of seller aliases and/or the first page of the screenshot for each seller alias should specifically indicate the intellectual property right(s) infringed. Evidence for each seller alias should be only a few pages and should include an overall index for efficient judicial review.

Transaction Evidence

A transaction with Illinois for each seller alias must be completed when the basis for jurisdiction is Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 4(k)(1) (or the United States if the basis for personal jurisdiction is Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 4(k)(2)).

Defendant Location

Evidence must indicate that the seller is located outside the United States.

SAFE Best Practices for Schedule A Cases

SAFE has developed these best practices for the plaintiffs’ bar to use in cases filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois in which plaintiffs seek ex parte injunctive relief including an asset restraint against multiple defendants whose identities are initially filed under seal, commonly called “Schedule A” cases.

Court-Specific Procedures

Check the Judge’s website for court-specific procedures for Schedule A cases.

Sealing Documents

Sealing documents should be limited to the list of seller aliases and corresponding seller alias screenshots. Plaintiff’s name and corresponding intellectual property should not be redacted or otherwise hidden.

Infringement

The infringement should be clear and evident. The sellers’ use should not fall under the trademark or copyright fair use doctrines.

Number of Seller Aliases

The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure provide no numerical guidance on the number of infringement occurrences that can be joined under Rule 20. In general, less than 100 seller aliases per case balances judicial efficiency and allows practical case management.

Screenshot Evidence

The list of seller aliases and/or the first page of the screenshot for each seller alias should specifically indicate the intellectual property right(s) infringed. Evidence for each seller alias should be only a few pages and should include an overall index for efficient judicial review.

Transaction Evidence

A transaction with Illinois for each seller alias must be completed when the basis for jurisdiction is Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 4(k)(1) (or the United States if the basis for personal jurisdiction is Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 4(k)(2)).

Defendant Location

Evidence must indicate that the seller is located outside the United States.