Nicholas Johnson v. The City of Los Angeles et al

Filing 36

STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER by Magistrate Judge Karen L. Stevenson re Stipulation for Protective Order 35 . See order for details. (hr)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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)
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Plaintiff,
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v.
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THE CITY OF LOS ANGELES, )
)
THOMAS
MALLOY,
FIDEL )
GONZALES and DOES 3 through 10. )
)
)
Defendants.

Nicholas Johnson,

CASE NO. CV-17-04104-KS
[Assigned: Magistrate Judge
Hon. Karen L. Stevenson]
STIPULATED
PROTECTIVE ORDER

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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 disclosure

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and from use for any purpose other than prosecuting this litigation may be warranted.

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Accordingly, the parties hereby stipulate to and petition the Court to enter the following

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Stipulated Protective Order. The parties acknowledge that this Order does not confer

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blanket protections on all disclosures or responses to discovery and that the protection it

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affords from public disclosure and use extends only to the limited information or items

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that are entitled to confidential treatment under the applicable legal principles. The

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parties further acknowledge, as set forth in Section 12.3, below, that this Stipulated

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Protective Order does not entitle them to file confidential information under seal; Civil

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Local Rule 79-5 sets forth the procedures that must be followed and the standards that

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will be applied when a party seeks permission from the court to file material under seal.

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B. GOOD CAUSE STATEMENT

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The Los Angeles Police Department conducted a non-categorical use of force

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investigation and internal affairs investigation, both internal investigations, into this

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matter. As part of the investigation police officers digital in-car video (“DICV”) were

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collected depicting the underlying incident. Further, compelled statements by way of

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written questions were taken from police officers. Such information is obtained through

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the administrative investigation of this matter by the LAPD and maintained as

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confidential peace officer personnel records and utilized for administrative issues. A

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protective order is appropriate for this information and related documents as such

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internal investigations can be used to ascertain if police policies and procedures in such

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areas as supervision, training, tactics, policies, etc., should be modified. These internal

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investigations are an essential aid to providing a critical, self-evaluation of LAPD

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officers and policies and accordingly serve the City of Los Angeles.

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Police reports, a 911 call, police radio communication and documents describing

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said information, were also generated as part of the incident. These documents and

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audio contain confidential, personal information for unrelated third-parties. A protective

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order is appropriate for this information and all third-party information, to protect their

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privacy and prevent embarrassment or humiliation for persons not involved in this

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litigation.

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Unrelated LAPD use of force investigations and internal affairs complaint

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investigations may, at some point, also be produced as a part of discovery in this

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litigation. For identical reasons as those listed in the first paragraph of this section, a

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protective order is appropriate for any such information which may be produced as a part

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of this litigation.

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Finally, medical records for Plaintiff may be produced as discovery in this

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litigation. Any medical records would inherently contain confidential, private

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information. A protective order is appropriate for any medical records produced in this

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litigation to prevent humiliation, embarrassment and a breach of confidential medical

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information.

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2.

DEFINITIONS
2.1

Action: This pending federal lawsuit, Johnson v. City of Los Angeles,

2:17-cv-04104-KS.
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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 (regardless of how

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it is generated, stored or maintained) or tangible things that qualify for protection under

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Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(c), and as specified above in the Good Cause

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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 information or

items that it produces in disclosures or in responses to discovery as “CONFIDENTIAL.”
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Disclosure or Discovery Material: all items or information, regardless of

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the medium or manner in which it is generated, stored, or maintained (including, among

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other things, testimony, transcripts, and tangible things), that are produced or generated

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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 matter

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pertinent to the litigation who has been retained by a Party or its counsel to serve as an

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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 Action.

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House Counsel does not include Outside Counsel of Record or any other outside

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counsel.

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

other legal entity not named as a Party to this action.

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2.10 Outside Counsel of Record: attorneys who are not employees of a party to

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this Action but are retained to represent or advise a party to this Action and have

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appeared in this Action on behalf of that party or are affiliated with a law firm which has

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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, directors,

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employees, consultants, retained experts, and Outside Counsel of Record (and their

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support staffs).

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

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2.13 Professional Vendors: persons or entities that provide litigation support

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services (e.g., photocopying, videotaping, translating, preparing exhibits or

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demonstrations, and organizing, storing, or retrieving data in any form or medium) and

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their employees and subcontractors.

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2.14 Protected Material: any Disclosure or Discovery Material that is designated
as “CONFIDENTIAL.”

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2.15 Receiving Party: a Party that receives Disclosure or Discovery Material

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from a Producing Party.

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3.

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SCOPE
The protections conferred by this Stipulation and Order cover not only Protected

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

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Protected Material; (2) all copies, excerpts, summaries, or compilations of Protected

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Material; and (3) any testimony, conversations, or presentations by Parties or their

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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 trial

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

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4.

DURATION

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Once a case proceeds to trial, all of the information that was designated as

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confidential or maintained pursuant to this protective order becomes public and will be

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presumptively available to all members of the public, including the press, unless

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compelling reasons supported by specific factual findings to proceed otherwise are made

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to the trial judge in advance of the trial. See Kamakana v. City and County of Honolulu,

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447 F.3d 1172, 1180-81 (9th Cir. 2006) (distinguishing “good cause” showing for

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sealing documents produced in discovery from “compelling reasons” standard when

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merits-related documents are part of court record). Accordingly, the terms of this

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protective order do not extend beyond the commencement of the trial.

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5.

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DESIGNATING PROTECTED MATERIAL
5.1

Exercise of Restraint and Care in Designating Material for Protection. Each

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Party or Non-Party that designates information or items for protection under this Order

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must take care to limit any such designation to specific material that qualifies under the

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appropriate standards. The Designating Party must designate for protection only those

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parts of material, documents, items, or oral or written communications that qualify so

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that other portions of the material, documents, items, or communications for which

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protection is not warranted are not swept unjustifiably within the ambit of this Order.

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Mass, indiscriminate, or routinized designations are prohibited. Designations that

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are shown to be clearly unjustified or that have been made for an improper purpose (e.g.,

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to unnecessarily encumber the case development process or to impose unnecessary

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expenses and burdens on other parties) may expose the Designating Party to sanctions.

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If it comes to a Designating Party’s attention that information or items that it

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designated for protection do not qualify for protection, that Designating Party must

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promptly notify all other Parties that it is withdrawing the inapplicable designation.

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5.2

Manner and Timing of Designations. Except as otherwise provided in this

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Order (see, e.g., second paragraph of section 5.2(a) below), or as otherwise stipulated or

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ordered, Disclosure or Discovery Material that qualifies for protection under this Order

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must be clearly so designated before the material is disclosed or produced.

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Designation in conformity with this Order requires:

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(a)

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

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but excluding transcripts of depositions or other pretrial or trial proceedings), that the

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Producing Party affix at a minimum, the legend “CONFIDENTIAL” (hereinafter

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“CONFIDENTIAL legend”), to each page that contains protected material. If only a

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portion or portions of the material on a page qualifies for protection, the Producing Party

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

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in the margins).

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

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not designate them for protection until after the inspecting Party has indicated which

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documents it would like copied and produced. During the inspection and before the

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designation, all of the material made available for inspection shall be deemed

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“CONFIDENTIAL.” After the inspecting Party has identified the documents it wants

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copied and produced, the Producing Party must determine which documents, or portions

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thereof, qualify for protection under this Order. Then, before producing the specified

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documents, the Producing Party must affix the “CONFIDENTIAL legend” to each page

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that 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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(b)

for testimony given in depositions that the Designating Party identify the

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Disclosure or Discovery Material on the record, before the close of the deposition all

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protected testimony.

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(c)

for information produced in some form other than documentary and

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

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

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“CONFIDENTIAL.” If only a portion or portions of the information warrants protection,

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the Producing Party, to the extent practicable, shall identify the protected portion(s).

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5.3

Inadvertent Failures to Designate. If timely corrected, an inadvertent

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failure to designate qualified information or items does not, standing alone, waive the

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Designating Party’s right to secure protection under this Order for such material. Upon

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timely correction of a designation, the Receiving Party must make reasonable efforts to

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assure that the material is treated in accordance with the provisions of this Order.

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6.

CHALLENGING CONFIDENTIALITY DESIGNATIONS
6.1

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

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

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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 be on the

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Designating Party. Frivolous challenges, and those made for an improper purpose (e.g.,

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to harass or impose unnecessary expenses and burdens on other parties) may expose the

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Challenging Party to sanctions. Unless the Designating Party has waived or withdrawn

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the confidentiality designation, all parties shall continue to afford the material in

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question the level of protection to which it is entitled under the Producing Party’s

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designation until the Court rules on the challenge.

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7.

ACCESS TO AND USE OF PROTECTED MATERIAL
7.1

Basic Principles. A Receiving Party may use Protected Material that is

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disclosed or produced by another Party or by a Non-Party in connection with this Action

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

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Material may be disclosed only to the categories of persons and under the conditions

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described in this Order. When the Action has been terminated, a Receiving Party must

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comply with the provisions of section 13 below (FINAL DISPOSITION).

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Protected Material must be stored and maintained by a Receiving Party at a

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

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authorized under this Order.

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7.2

Disclosure of “CONFIDENTIAL” Information or Items. Unless otherwise

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ordered by the court or permitted in writing by the Designating Party, a Receiving Party

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may disclose any information or item designated “CONFIDENTIAL” only to:

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(a)

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

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employees of said Outside Counsel of Record to whom it is reasonably necessary to

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disclose the information for this Action;

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(b)

the officers, directors, and employees (including House Counsel) of

the Receiving Party to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary for this Action;
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Experts (as defined in this Order) of the Receiving Party to whom

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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 Vendors

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to 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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(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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during their depositions, witnesses ,and attorneys for witnesses, in the

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

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requests that the witness sign the form attached as Exhibit 1 hereto; and (2) they will not

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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 agreed

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

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testimony or exhibits to depositions that reveal Protected Material may be separately

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bound by the court reporter and may not be disclosed to anyone except as permitted

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under this Stipulated Protective Order; and

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(i)

any mediator or settlement officer, and their supporting personnel,

mutually agreed upon by any of the parties engaged in settlement 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 that

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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 order to

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

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order is subject to this Protective Order. Such notification shall include a copy of this

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Stipulated Protective Order; and

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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 the

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

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“CONFIDENTIAL” before a determination by the court from which the subpoena or

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order issued, unless the Party has obtained the Designating Party’s permission. The

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Designating Party shall bear the burden and expense of seeking protection in that court

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of its confidential material and nothing in these provisions should be construed as

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authorizing or encouraging a Receiving Party in this Action to disobey a lawful directive

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from another court.

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IN THIS LITIGATION

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A NON-PARTY’S PROTECTED MATERIAL SOUGHT TO BE PRODUCED
(a)

The terms of this Order are applicable to information produced by a Non-

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

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by Non-Parties in connection with this litigation is protected by the remedies and relief

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provided by this Order. Nothing in these provisions should be construed as prohibiting a

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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 produce

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a Non-Party’s confidential information in its possession, and the Party is subject to an

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agreement with the Non-Party not to produce the Non-Party’s confidential information,

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then the Party shall:

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(1)

promptly notify in writing the Requesting Party and the Non-Party

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

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with a Non-Party;

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(2)

promptly provide the Non-Party with a copy of the Stipulated Protective

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Order in this Action, the relevant discovery request(s), and a reasonably specific

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description of the information requested; and

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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 within 14

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days of receiving the notice and accompanying information, the Receiving Party may

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produce the Non-Party’s confidential information responsive to the discovery request. If

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the Non-Party timely seeks a protective order, the Receiving Party shall not produce any

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information in its possession or control that is subject to the confidentiality agreement

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with the Non-Party before a determination by the court. Absent a court order to the

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contrary, the Non-Party shall bear the burden and expense of seeking protection in this

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court of its Protected Material.

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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 writing

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the Designating Party of the unauthorized disclosures, (b) use its best efforts to retrieve

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all unauthorized copies of the Protected Material, (c) inform the person or persons to

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whom unauthorized disclosures were made of all the terms of this Order, and (d) request

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such person or persons to execute the “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound”

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that is attached hereto as Exhibit A.

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11.

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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 protection, the

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obligations of the Receiving Parties are those set forth in Federal Rule of Civil

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Procedure 26(b)(5)(B). This provision is not intended to modify whatever procedure

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may be established in an e-discovery order that provides for production without prior

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privilege review. Pursuant to Federal Rule of Evidence 502(d) and (e), insofar as the

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parties reach an agreement on the effect of disclosure of a communication or information

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covered by the attorney-client privilege or work product protection, the parties may

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incorporate their agreement in the stipulated 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 this

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

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

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

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Material must comply with Civil Local Rule 79-5. Protected Material may only be filed

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under seal pursuant to a court order authorizing the sealing of the specific Protected

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Material at issue. If a Party's request to file Protected Material under seal is denied by

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the court, then the Receiving Party may file the information in the public record unless

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otherwise instructed by the court.

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13.

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

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

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Protected Material to the Producing Party or destroy such material. As used in this

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subdivision, “all Protected Material” includes all copies, abstracts, compilations,

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summaries, and any other format reproducing or capturing any of the Protected Material.

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Notwithstanding this provision, Counsel are entitled to retain an archival copy of all

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pleadings, motion papers, trial, deposition, and hearing transcripts, legal memoranda,

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correspondence, deposition and trial exhibits, expert reports, attorney work product, and

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consultant and expert work product, even if such materials contain Protected Material.

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Any such archival copies that contain or constitute Protected Material remain subject to

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this Protective Order as set forth in Section 4 (DURATION).

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14.

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measures including, without limitation, contempt proceedings and/or monetary 3

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sanctions.

Any violation of this Order may be punished by any and all appropriate 2

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IT IS SO STIPULATED, THROUGH COUNSEL OF RECORD.

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DATED:

March 2, 2018

Respectfully submitted
PEREIRA LAW

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By:

/s/_______________
CHRISTIAN F. PEREIRA
Attorney for Plaintiffs

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DATED:

March 2, 2018

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Respectfully submitted
MICHAEL N. FEUER, City Attorney
THOMAS H. PETERS, Chief Assistant City Attorney
CORY M. BRENTE, Supv. Assistant City Attorney

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By:

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/S/ ________________________

MATTHEW P. MATTIS, Deputy City Attorney

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Attorneys for Defendants CITY OF LOS ANGELES,
THOMAS MALLOY AND FIDEL GONZALES

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FOR GOOD CAUSE SHOWN, IT IS SO ORDERED.

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DATED: March 6, 2018

_____________________________________
KAREN STEVENSON
UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

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EXHIBIT A

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ACKNOWLEDGMENT AND AGREEMENT TO BE BOUND

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I, ______________________ [print or type full name], of _________________ [print or
type full address], declare under penalty of perjury that I have read in its entirety and
understand the Stipulated Protective Order that was issued by the United States District
Court for the Central District of California on [date] in the case of ___________ [insert
formal name of the case and the number and initials assigned to it by the court]. I agree
to comply with and to be bound by all the terms of this Stipulated Protective Order and I
understand and acknowledge that failure to so comply could expose me to sanctions and
punishment in the nature of contempt. I solemnly promise that I will not disclose in any

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

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

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agree to submit to the jurisdiction of the United States District Court for the Central

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District of California for the purpose of enforcing the terms of this Stipulated Protective

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Order, even if such enforcement proceedings occur after termination of this action. I

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hereby appoint __________________________ [print or type full name] of

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_______________________________________ [print or type full address and

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telephone number] as my California agent for service of process in connection with this

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

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Date: ________

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City and State where sworn and signed: _________________________________
Printed name: _______________________________
Signature: __________________________________

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