Sheena Raffin v. Medicredit, Inc.

Filing 22

PROTECTIVE ORDER by Magistrate Judge Alka Sagar re Stipulation for Protective Order 21 . (See Order for complete details) (afe)

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Amber Henry (SBN 247624)
[e-mail]
EISNER JAFFE APC
9601 Wilshire Boulevard, Suite 700
Beverly Hills, California 90210
Telephone: [phone]
Facsimile: 310.855.3201

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Attorney for Defendant Medicredit, Inc.

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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SHEENA RAFFIN, individually and
on behalf of all others similarly
situated,
Plaintiffs,
v.

Case No.: 2:15-CV-00365-FMO-AS
CLASS ACTION
[PROPOSED] STIPULATED
PROTECTIVE ORDER

MEDICREDIT, INC.,
Defendant.

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STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER
CASE NO.: 2:15-CV-00365-FMO-AS

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A. PURPOSES AND LIMITATIONS
Discovery in this action is likely to involve production of confidential,

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proprietary, or private information for which special protection from public

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disclosure and from use for any purpose other than prosecuting this litigation may

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be warranted. Accordingly, the parties hereby stipulate to and petition the Court to

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enter the following Stipulated Protective Order. The parties acknowledge that this

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Order does not confer blanket protections on all disclosures or responses to

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discovery and that the protection it affords from public disclosure and use extends

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only to the limited information or items that are entitled to confidential treatment

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under the applicable legal principles. The parties further acknowledge, as set forth

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in Section 12.3, below, that this Stipulated Protective Order does not entitle them to

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file confidential information under seal; Civil Local Rule 79-5 sets forth the

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procedures that must be followed and the standards that will be applied when a

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party seeks permission from the court to file material under seal.

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B. GOOD CAUSE STATEMENT
This action is likely to involve the disclosure of documents and information

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involving personal medical records, confidential and proprietary training

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information regarding Defendant’s business practices and proprietary manuals for

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which special protection from public disclosure and from use for any purpose other

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than prosecution of this action is warranted. Such confidential and proprietary

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materials and information consist of, among other things, information regarding

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confidential business practices, or other confidential research, development, or

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commercial information (including information implicating privacy rights of third

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party consumers and debtors) as well as proprietary system manuals, information

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otherwise generally unavailable to the public, or which may be privileged or

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otherwise protected from disclosure under state or federal statutes, court rules, case

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decisions, or common law. Accordingly, to expedite the flow of information, to

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STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER
CASE NO.: 2:15-CV-00365-FMO-AS

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facilitate the prompt resolution of disputes over confidentiality of discovery

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materials, to adequately protect information the parties are entitled to keep

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confidential, to ensure that the parties are permitted reasonable necessary uses of

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such material in preparation for and in the conduct of trial, to address their handling

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at the end of the litigation, and serve the ends of justice, a protective order for such

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information is justified in this matter. It is the intent of the parties that information

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will not be designated as confidential for tactical reasons and that nothing be so

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designated without a good faith belief that it has been maintained in a confidential,

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non-public manner, and there is good cause why it should not be part of the public

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record of this case.

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2.

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DEFINITIONS
2.1

Action: Sheena Raffin v. Medicredit, Inc., Case No. 2:15-CV-

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00365-FMO-AS pending in the United States District Court for the Central District

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of California.

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2.2

Challenging Party: a Party or Non-Party that challenges the

designation of information or items under this Order.
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“CONFIDENTIAL” Information or Items: information

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(regardless of how it is generated, stored or maintained) or tangible things that

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qualify for protection under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(c), and as specified

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above in the Good Cause Statement.

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2.4

Counsel: Outside Counsel of Record and House Counsel (as

well as their support staff).
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Designating Party: a Party or Non-Party that designates

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information or items that it produces in disclosures or in responses to discovery as

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“CONFIDENTIAL.”

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2.6

Disclosure or Discovery Material: all items or information,

regardless of the medium or manner in which it is generated, stored, or maintained
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STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER
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(including, among other things, testimony, transcripts, and tangible things), that are

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produced or generated in disclosures or responses to discovery in this matter.

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2.7

Expert: a person with specialized knowledge or experience in a

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matter pertinent to the litigation who has been retained by a Party or its counsel to

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serve as an expert witness or as a consultant in this Action.

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2.8

House Counsel: attorneys who are employees of a party to this

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Action. House Counsel does not include Outside Counsel of Record or any other

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outside counsel.

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2.9

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Non-Party: any natural person, partnership, corporation,

association, or other legal entity not named as a Party to this action.
2.10 Outside Counsel of Record: attorneys who are not employees

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of a party to this Action but are retained to represent or advise a party to this Action

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and have appeared in this Action on behalf of that party or are affiliated with a law

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firm which has appeared on behalf of that party, and includes support staff.

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2.11 Party: any party to this Action, including all of its officers,

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directors, employees, consultants, retained experts, and Outside Counsel of Record

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(and their support staffs).

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2.12 Producing Party: a Party or Non-Party that produces Disclosure
or Discovery Material in this Action.
2.13 Professional Vendors:

persons or entities that provide

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litigation support services (e.g., photocopying, videotaping, translating, preparing

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exhibits or demonstrations, and organizing, storing, or retrieving data in any form

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or medium) and their employees and subcontractors.

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2.14 Protected Material: any Disclosure or Discovery Material that is
designated as “CONFIDENTIAL.”
2.15 Receiving Party: a Party that receives Disclosure or Discovery
Material from a Producing Party.
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STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER
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3.

SCOPE

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The protections conferred by this Stipulation and Order cover not only

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Protected Material (as defined above), but also (1) any information copied or

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extracted from Protected Material; (2) all copies, excerpts, summaries, or

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compilations of Protected Material; and (3) any testimony, conversations, or

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presentations by Parties or their Counsel that might reveal Protected Material.

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Any use of Protected Material at trial shall be governed by the orders of the

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trial judge. This Order does not govern the use of Protected Material at trial.

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4.

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DURATION
Even after final disposition of this litigation, the confidentiality obligations

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imposed by this Order shall remain in effect until a Designating Party agrees

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otherwise in writing or a court order otherwise directs. Final disposition shall be

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deemed to be the later of (1) dismissal of all claims and defenses in this Action,

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with or without prejudice; and (2) final judgment herein after the completion and

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exhaustion of all appeals, rehearings, remands, trials, or reviews of this Action,

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including the time limits for filing any motions or applications for extension of time

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pursuant to applicable law.

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5.

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DESIGNATING PROTECTED MATERIAL
5.1

Exercise of Restraint and Care in Designating Material for

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Protection. Each Party or Non-Party that designates information or items for

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protection under this Order must take care to limit any such designation to specific

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material that qualifies under the appropriate standards. The Designating Party must

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designate for protection only those parts of material, documents, items, or oral or

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written communications that qualify so that other portions of the material,

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documents, items, or communications for which protection is not warranted are not

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swept unjustifiably within the ambit of this Order.

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If it comes to a Designating Party’s attention that information or items
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STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER
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that it designated for protection do not qualify for protection, that Designating Party

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must promptly notify all other Parties that it is withdrawing the inapplicable

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designation.

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5.2

Manner and Timing of Designations. Except as otherwise

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provided in this Order (see, e.g., second paragraph of section 5.2(a) below), or as

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otherwise stipulated or ordered, Disclosure or Discovery Material that qualifies for

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protection under this Order must be clearly so designated before the material is

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disclosed or produced.

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Designation in conformity with this Order requires:
(a)

for information in documentary form (e.g., paper or electronic

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documents, but excluding transcripts of depositions or other pretrial or trial

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proceedings), that the Producing Party affix at a minimum, the legend

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“CONFIDENTIAL” (hereinafter “CONFIDENTIAL legend”), to each page that

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contains protected material. If only a portion or portions of the material on a page

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qualifies for protection, the Producing Party also must clearly identify the protected

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portion(s) (e.g., by making appropriate markings in the margins).

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A Party or Non-Party that makes original documents available for

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inspection need not designate them for protection until after the inspecting Party

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has indicatedwhich documents it would like copied and produced. During the

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inspection and before the designation, all of the material made available for

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inspection shall be deemed “CONFIDENTIAL.” After the inspecting Party has

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identified the documents it wants copied and produced, the Producing Party must

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determine which documents, or portions thereof, qualify for protection under this

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Order. Then, before producing the specified documents, the Producing Party must

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affix the “CONFIDENTIAL legend” to each page that contains Protected Material.

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If only a portion or portions of the material on a page qualifies for protection, the

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Producing Party also must clearly identify the protected portion(s) (e.g., by making

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STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER
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appropriate markings in the margins).

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(b) for testimony given in depositions that the Designating Party

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identify the Disclosure or Discovery Material on the record, before the close of the

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deposition all protected testimony.

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(c)

for information produced in some form other than documentary

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and for any other tangible items, that the Producing Party affix in a prominent place

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on the exterior of the container or containers in which the information is stored the

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legend “CONFIDENTIAL.” If only a portion or portions of the information

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warrants protection, the Producing Party, to the extent practicable, shall identify the

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protected portion(s).

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5.3

Inadvertent Failures to Designate. If timely corrected, an

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inadvertent failure to designate qualified information or items does not, standing

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alone, waive the Designating Party’s right to secure protection under this Order for

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such material. Upon timely correction of a designation, the Receiving Party must

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make reasonable efforts to assure that the material is treated in accordance with the

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provisions of this Order.

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6.

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CHALLENGING CONFIDENTIALITY DESIGNATIONS
6.1

Timing of Challenges. Any Party or Non-Party may challenge

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designation of confidentiality at any time that is consistent with the Court’s

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Scheduling Order.

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6.2

Meet and Confer. The Challenging Party shall initiate the

dispute resolution process under Local Rule 37.1 et seq.
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The burden of persuasion in any such challenge proceeding shall

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be on the Designating Party. Unless the Designating Party has waived or

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withdrawn the confidentiality designation, all parties shall continue to afford the

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material in question the level of protection to which it is entitled under the

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Producing Party’s designation until the Court rules on the challenge.

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STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER
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7.

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ACCESS TO AND USE OF PROTECTED MATERIAL
7.1

Basic Principles. A Receiving Party may use Protected Material

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that is disclosed or produced by another Party or by a Non-Party in connection with

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this Action only for prosecuting, defending, or attempting to settle this Action.

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Such Protected Material may be disclosed only to the categories of persons and

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under the conditions described in this Order. When the Action has been terminated,

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a Receiving Party must comply with the provisions of section 13 below (FINAL

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DISPOSITION).

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Protected Material must be stored and maintained by a Receiving

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Party at a location and in a secure manner that ensures that access is limited to the

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persons authorized under this Order.

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7.2

Disclosure of “CONFIDENTIAL” Information or Items.

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Unless otherwise ordered by the court or permitted in writing by the Designating

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Party, a Receiving Party may disclose any information or item designated

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“CONFIDENTIAL” only to:

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(a)

the Receiving Party’s Outside Counsel of Record in this Action,

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as well as employees of said Outside Counsel of Record to whom it is reasonably

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necessary to disclose the information for this Action;

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(b)

the officers, directors, and employees (including House

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Counsel) of the Receiving Party to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary for this

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Action;

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(c)

Experts (as defined in this Order) of the Receiving Party to

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whom disclosure is reasonably necessary for this Action and who have signed the

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“Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound” (Exhibit A);

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(d) the court and its personnel;

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(e) court reporters and their staff;

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(f) professional jury or trial consultants, mock jurors, and Professional

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STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER
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Vendors to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary for this Action and who have

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signed the “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound” (Exhibit A);

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(g) the author or recipient of a document containing the information or
a custodian or other person who otherwise possessed or knew the information;

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(h) during their depositions, witnesses ,and attorneys for witnesses, in

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the Action to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary provided: (1) the deposing

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party requests that the witness sign the form attached as Exhibit 1 hereto; and (2)

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they will not be permitted to keep any confidential information unless they sign the

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“Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound” (Exhibit A), unless otherwise

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agreed by the Designating Party or ordered by the court. Pages of transcribed

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deposition testimony or exhibits to depositions that reveal Protected Material may

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be separately bound by the court reporter and may not be disclosed to anyone

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except as permitted under this Stipulated Protective Order; and

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(i)

any mediator or settlement officer, and their supporting

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personnel, mutually agreed upon by any of the parties engaged in settlement

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discussions.

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8. PROTECTED MATERIAL SUBPOENAED OR ORDERED PRODUCED IN

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OTHER LITIGATION

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If a Party is served with a subpoena or a court order issued in other litigation

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that compels disclosure of any information or items designated in this Action as

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“CONFIDENTIAL,” that Party must:

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(a) promptly notify in writing the Designating Party. Such notification
shall include a copy of the subpoena or court order;
(b) promptly notify in writing the party who caused the subpoena or

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order to issue in the other litigation that some or all of the material covered by the

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subpoena or order is subject to this Protective Order. Such notification shall include

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a copy of this Stipulated Protective Order; and

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STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER
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(c) cooperate with respect to all reasonable procedures sought to be
pursued by the Designating Party whose Protected Material may be affected.

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If the Designating Party timely seeks a protective order, the Party served with

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the subpoena or court order shall not produce any information designated in this

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action as “CONFIDENTIAL” before a determination by the court from which the

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subpoena or order issued, unless the Party has obtained the Designating Party’s

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permission. The Designating Party shall bear the burden and expense of seeking

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protection in that court of its confidential material and nothing in these provisions

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should be construed as authorizing or encouraging a Receiving Party in this Action

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to disobey a lawful directive from another court.

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9.

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RODUCED IN THIS LITIGATION

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A NON-PARTY’S PROTECTED MATERIAL SOUGHT TO BE

(a) The terms of this Order are applicable to information produced by a

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Non-Party in this Action and designated as “CONFIDENTIAL.” Such information

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produced by Non-Parties in connection with this litigation is protected by the

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remedies and relief provided by this Order. Nothing in these provisions should be

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construed as prohibiting a Non-Party from seeking additional protections.

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(b) In the event that a Party is required, by a valid discovery request, to

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produce a Non-Party’s confidential information in its possession, and the Party is

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subject to an agreement with the Non-Party not to produce the Non-Party’s

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confidential information, then the Party shall:

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(1) promptly notify in writing the Requesting Party and the Non-

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Party that some or all of the information requested is subject to a confidentiality

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agreement with a Non-Party;

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(2) promptly provide the Non-Party with a copy of the

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Stipulated Protective Order in this Action, the relevant discovery request(s), and a

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reasonably specific description of the information requested; and

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STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER
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(3) make the information requested available for inspection by
the Non-Party, if requested.

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(c) If the Non-Party fails to seek a protective order from this court

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within 14 days of receiving the notice and accompanying information, the

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Receiving Party may produce the Non-Party’s confidential information responsive

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to the discovery request. If the Non-Party timely seeks a protective order, the

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Receiving Party shall not produce any information in its possession or control that

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is subject to the confidentiality agreement with the Non-Party before a

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determination by the court. Absent a court order to the contrary, the Non-Party shall

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bear the burden and expense of seeking protection in this court of its Protected

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Material.

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10.

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UNAUTHORIZED DISCLOSURE OF PROTECTED MATERIAL
If a Receiving Party learns that, by inadvertence or otherwise, it has disclosed

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Protected Material to any person or in any circumstance not authorized under this

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Stipulated Protective Order, the Receiving Party must immediately (a) notify in

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writing the Designating Party of the unauthorized disclosures, (b) use its best

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efforts to retrieve all unauthorized copies of the Protected Material, (c) inform the

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person or persons to whom unauthorized disclosures were made of all the terms of

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this Order, and (d) request such person or persons to execute the “Acknowledgment

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and Agreement to Be Bound” that is attached hereto as Exhibit A.

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PROTECTED MATERIAL

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INADVERTENT PRODUCTION OF PRIVILEGED OR OTHERWISE

When a Producing Party gives notice to Receiving Parties that certain

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inadvertently produced material is subject to a claim of privilege or other

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protection, the obligations of the Receiving Parties are those set forth in Federal

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Rule of Civil Procedure 26(b)(5)(B). This provision is not intended to modify

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whatever procedure may be established in an e-discovery order that provides for

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production without prior privilege review. Pursuant to Federal Rule of Evidence

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502(d) and (e), insofar as the parties reach an agreement on the effect of disclosure

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of a communication or information covered by the attorney-client privilege or work

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product protection, the parties may incorporate their agreement in the stipulated

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protective order submitted to the court.

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12.

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MISCELLANEOUS
12.1 Right to Further Relief. Nothing in this Order abridges the right of any

person to seek its modification by the Court in the future.

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12.2 Right to Assert Other Objections. By stipulating to the entry of this

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Protective Order no Party waives any right it otherwise would have to object to

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disclosing or producing any information or item on any ground not addressed in

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this Stipulated Protective Order. Similarly, no Party waives any right to object on

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any ground to use in evidence of any of the material covered by this Protective

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Order.

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12.3 Filing Protected Material. A Party that seeks to file under seal any

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Protected Material must comply with Civil Local Rule 79-5. Protected Material

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may only be filed under seal pursuant to a court order authorizing the sealing of the

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specific Protected Material at issue. If a Party's request to file Protected Material

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under seal is denied by the court, then the Receiving Party may file the information

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in the public record unless otherwise instructed by the court.

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13.

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FINAL DISPOSITION
After the final disposition of this Action, as defined in paragraph 4, within 60

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days of a written request by the Designating Party, each Receiving Party must

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return all Protected Material to the Producing Party or destroy such material. As

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used in this subdivision, “all Protected Material” includes all copies, abstracts,

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compilations, summaries, and any other format reproducing or capturing any of the

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Protected Material. Whether the Protected Material is returned or destroyed, the

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Receiving Party must submit a written certification to the Producing Party (and, if

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not the same person or entity, to the Designating Party) by the 60 day deadline that

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(1) identifies(by category, where appropriate) all the Protected Material that was

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returned or destroyed and (2)affirms that the Receiving Party has not retained any

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copies, abstracts, compilations, summaries or any other format reproducing or

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capturing any of the Protected Material. Notwithstanding this provision, Counsel

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are entitled to retain an archival copy of all pleadings, motion papers, trial,

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deposition, and hearing transcripts, legal memoranda, correspondence, deposition

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and trial exhibits, expert reports, attorney work product, and consultant and expert

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work product, even if such materials contain Protected Material. Any such archival

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copies that contain or constitute Protected Material remain subject to this Protective

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Order as set forth in Section 4 (DURATION).

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FOR GOOD CAUSE SHOWN, IT IS SO ORDERED.

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Dated: June 23, 2015

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/s/

Hon. Alka Sagar
United States Magistrate Judge

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EXHIBIT A
ACKNOWLEDGMENT AND AGREEMENT TO BE BOUND

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I, ____________________________, [print or type full name], of

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_________________________ [print or type full address], declare under penalty of

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perjury that I have read in its entirety and understand the Stipulated Protective

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Order that was issued by the United States District Court for the Central District of

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California on _______[date] in the case of Sheena Raffin v. Medicredit, Inc., Case

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No. 2:15-CV-00365-FMO-AS. I agree to comply with and to be bound by all the

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terms of this Stipulated Protective Order and I understand and acknowledge that

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failure to so comply could expose me to sanctions and punishment in the nature of

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contempt. I solemnly promise that I will not disclose in any manner any

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information or item that is subject to this Stipulated Protective Order to any person

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or entity except in strict compliance with the provisions of this Order.

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I further agree to submit to the jurisdiction of the United States District Court for

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the Central District of California for the purpose of enforcing the terms of this

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Stipulated Protective Order, even if such enforcement proceedings occur after

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termination of this action. I hereby appoint ________________________ [print

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or type full name] of ______________________________________[print or type

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full address and telephone number] as my California agent for service of process in

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connection with this action or any proceedings related to enforcement of this
Stipulated Protective Order.

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Date: ___________________________
City and State where sworn and signed:________________________

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Printed name: __________________________

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Signature:

__________________________________

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