WASHINGTON (AP) — We soon could know the identity of the manufacturer — only known now as “Company Doe” — in a product safety case linked to a child’s death.
The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond, Va., sided with consumer groups Wednesday in their fight to reveal the identity of the manufacturer. The court reversed part of a lower court ruling and sent the case back to the district court in Maryland with instructions to “unseal the case in its entirety.”
“We hold that the district court’s sealing order violates the public’s right of access under the First Amendment,” Circuit Judge Henry F. Floyd wrote.
In 2011, an unidentified manufacturer went to court to stop the Consumer Product Safety Commission from publishing online a complaint about a product the company makes. It was the first legal challenge to the CPSC’s federal database for safety complaints about products ranging from strollers and toys to household appliances.
The district court ruled in favor of the company and agreed to keep proceedings secret, allowing the manufacturer to use the pseudonym “Company Doe.” Three consumer groups — Public Citizen, Consumer Federation of America and Consumers Union — appealed.
“Today’s decision is a big victory both for the public’s right of access to court proceedings and for consumers who will benefit from the operation of the consumer product safety database,” said Scott Michelman, the attorney handling the case for Public Citizen.
Little is known publicly about the safety complaint against Company Doe. It was not filed by the child or the child’s family, but by an unidentified government agency.
The manufacturing community has complained that reports of harm posted in the CPSC database with missing or inaccurate information could do irreparable harm to a company’s reputation. When a complaint is sent to the CPSC for the database, the manufacturer is informed of the complaint and can respond before the report is made public. In this case, Company Doe went to court to prevent publication of the complaint.
