Felipe Rodriguez et al v. Nissan North America, Inc. et al

Filing 34

STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER by Magistrate Judge Rozella A. Oliver re Stipulation for Protective Order 33 (dml)

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AMIR NASSIHI (SBN 235936)
[e-mail]
JOAN R. CAMAGONG (SBN 288217)
[e-mail]
NALANI CRISOLOGO (SBN 313402)
[e-mail]
SHOOK, HARDY & BACON L.L.P.
555 Mission Street, Suite 2300
San Francisco, CA 94105
TEL: [phone] | FAX: [phone]
Attorneys for Defendant
NISSAN NORTH AMERICA, INC.

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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FELIPE AQUINO RODRIGUEZ, an
individual, and ELIDA RAMOS
MARQUEZ, an individual

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Plaintiffs,

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Case No. 2:21-cv-09669-SPG-RAO
STIPULATED PROTECTIVE
ORDER1

v.

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NISSAN NORTH AMERICA, INC.,
a California Corporation, and DOES
1 through 10, inclusive,

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Defendant.

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This Stipulated Protective Order is substantially based on the model protective
order provided under Magistrate Judge Rozella A. Oliver’s Procedures.
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STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER
Case No. 2:21-cv-09669-SPG-RAO

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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.

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B. GOOD CAUSE STATEMENT

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In light of the nature of the claims and allegations in this case and the

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parties’ representations that discovery in this case will involve the production of

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confidential records, and in order to expedite the flow of information, to facilitate

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the prompt resolution of disputes over confidentiality of discovery materials, to

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

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ensure that the parties are permitted reasonable necessary uses of such material in

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connection with this action, to address their handling of such material at the end of

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

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information is justified in this matter. The parties shall not designate any

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information/documents as confidential without a good faith belief that such

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information/documents have been maintained in a confidential, non-public

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manner, and that there is good cause or a compelling reason why it should not be

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part of the public record of this case.

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C. ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF PROCEDURE FOR FILING UNDER SEAL

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

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this Stipulated Protective Order does not entitle them to file confidential

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information under seal; Local Civil Rule 79-5 sets forth the procedures that must
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STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER
Case No. 2:21-cv-09669-SPG-RAO

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be followed and the standards that will be applied when a party seeks permission

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from the court to file material under seal.

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There is a strong presumption that the public has a right of access to judicial

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proceedings and records in civil cases. In connection with non-dispositive

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motions, good cause must be shown to support a filing under seal. See Kamakana

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v. City and County of Honolulu, 447 F.3d 1172, 1176 (9th Cir. 2006); Phillips v.

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Gen. Motors Corp., 307 F.3d 1206, 1210-11 (9th Cir. 2002); Makar-Welbon v.

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Sony Electrics, Inc., 187 F.R.D. 576, 577 (E.D. Wis. 1999) (even stipulated

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protective orders require good cause showing), and a specific showing of good

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cause or compelling reasons with proper evidentiary support and legal

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justification, must be made with respect to Protected Material that a party seeks to

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file under seal. The parties’ mere designation of Disclosure or Discovery Material

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as CONFIDENTIAL does not—without the submission of competent evidence by

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declaration, establishing that the material sought to be filed under seal qualifies as

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confidential, privileged, or otherwise protectable—constitute good cause.

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Further, if a party requests sealing related to a dispositive motion or trial,

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then compelling reasons, not only good cause, for the sealing must be shown, and

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the relief sought shall be narrowly tailored to serve the specific interest to be

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protected. See Pintos v. Pacific Creditors Ass’n, 605 F.3d 665, 677-79 (9th Cir.

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2010). For each item or type of information, document, or thing sought to be filed

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or introduced under seal in connection with a dispositive motion or trial, the party

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seeking protection must articulate compelling reasons, supported by specific facts

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and legal justification, for the requested sealing order. Again, competent evidence

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supporting the application to file documents under seal must be provided by

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declaration.

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Any document that is not confidential, privileged, or otherwise protectable

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in its entirety will not be filed under seal if the confidential portions can be

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redacted. If documents can be redacted, then a redacted version for public
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STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER
Case No. 2:21-cv-09669-SPG-RAO

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viewing, omitting only the confidential, privileged, or otherwise protectable

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portions of the document shall be filed. Any application that seeks to file

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documents under seal in their entirety should include an explanation of why

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redaction is not feasible.

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2.

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DEFINITIONS
2.1

Action: Rodriguez v. Nissan North America, Inc., 2:21-cv-09669-

SPG-RAO
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 (regardless of

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

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protection under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(c), and as specified above in

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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 information

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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,

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regardless of the medium or manner in which it is generated, stored, or maintained

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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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STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER
Case No. 2:21-cv-09669-SPG-RAO

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.

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

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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 that has appeared on behalf of that party, and includes support staff.
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).
2.12 Producing Party: a Party or Non-Party that produces Disclosure or

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Discovery Material in this Action.

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2.13 Professional Vendors: persons or entities that provide litigation

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support 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)

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and their employees and subcontractors.
2.14 Protected Material: any Disclosure or Discovery Material that is

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designated as “CONFIDENTIAL.”
2.15 Receiving Party: a Party that receives Disclosure or Discovery

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Material from a Producing Party.

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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.
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.

DURATION
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STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER
Case No. 2:21-cv-09669-SPG-RAO

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

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CONFIDENTIAL or maintained pursuant to this protective order used or

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introduced as an exhibit at trial becomes public and will be presumptively

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

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

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trial judge in advance of the trial. See Kamakana, 447 F.3d at 1180-81

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(distinguishing “good cause” showing for sealing documents produced in

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discovery from “compelling reasons” standard when merits-related documents are

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part of court record). Accordingly, the terms of this protective order do not extend

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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.

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Each Party or Non-Party that designates information or items for protection under

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this Order must take care to limit any such designation to specific material that

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qualifies under the appropriate standards. The Designating Party must designate

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

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

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items or communications for which protection is not warranted are not swept

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unjustifiably within the ambit of this Order.

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Mass, indiscriminate or routinized designations are prohibited.

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Designations that are shown to be clearly unjustified or that have been made for an

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improper purpose (e.g., to unnecessarily encumber the case development process

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

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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

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designation.
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STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER
Case No. 2:21-cv-09669-SPG-RAO

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5.2

Manner and Timing of Designations. Except as otherwise provided in

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

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

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

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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

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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 of the material on a page qualifies

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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 inspection

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

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

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

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deemed “CONFIDENTIAL.” After the inspecting Party has identified the

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

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which documents, or portions thereof, qualify for protection under this Order.

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Then, before producing the specified documents, the Producing Party must affix

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

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only a portion of the material on a page qualifies for protection, the Producing

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

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

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the deposition all protected testimony.
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STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER
Case No. 2:21-cv-09669-SPG-RAO

(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

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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

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the protected portion(s).
5.3

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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

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the Designating Party’s right to secure protection under this Order for such

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

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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.

CHALLENGING CONFIDENTIALITY DESIGNATIONS
6.1

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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

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Scheduling Order.
6.2

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Meet and Confer. The Challenging Party shall initiate the dispute

resolution process under Local Rule 37.1 et seq.
6.3

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The burden of persuasion in any such challenge proceeding shall be

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on the Designating Party. Frivolous challenges, and those made for an improper

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purpose (e.g., to harass or impose unnecessary expenses and burdens on other

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parties) may expose the Challenging Party to sanctions. Unless the Designating

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Party has waived or withdrawn the confidentiality designation, all parties shall

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continue to afford the material in question the level of protection to which it is

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entitled under the Producing Party’s designation until the Court rules on the

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challenge.

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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 that
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STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER
Case No. 2:21-cv-09669-SPG-RAO

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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

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terminated, a Receiving Party must comply with the provisions of section 13

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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

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

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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, as

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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 Counsel) of

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the Receiving Party to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary for this Action;

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(c) 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

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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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STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER
Case No. 2:21-cv-09669-SPG-RAO

(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 A 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
(i) any mediator or settlement officer, and their supporting personnel,

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mutually agreed upon by any of the parties engaged in settlement discussions.

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8.

PROTECTED MATERIAL SUBPOENAED OR ORDERED PRODUCED

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IN 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

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include a copy of this 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.
If the Designating Party timely seeks a protective order, the Party served

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

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

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the subpoena or order issued, unless the Party has obtained the Designating Party’s
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STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER
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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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A NON-PARTY’S PROTECTED MATERIAL SOUGHT TO BE
PRODUCED IN THIS LITIGATION
(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

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

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

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should be construed as prohibiting a Non-Party from seeking additional

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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 Stipulated

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

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specific description of the information requested; and

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(3) make the information requested available for inspection by the
Non-Party, if requested.
(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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STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER
Case No. 2:21-cv-09669-SPG-RAO

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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

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

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Protected Material.

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10.

UNAUTHORIZED DISCLOSURE OF PROTECTED MATERIAL

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If a Receiving Party learns that, by inadvertence or otherwise, it has

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disclosed Protected Material to any person or in any circumstance not authorized

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under this Stipulated Protective Order, the Receiving Party must immediately (a)

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

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

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

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terms of this Order, and (d) request such person or persons to execute the

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“Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound” that is attached hereto as Exhibit

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A.

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11.

INADVERTENT PRODUCTION OF PRIVILEGED OR OTHERWISE

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PROTECTED MATERIAL

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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

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

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stipulated protective order submitted to the court.

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12.

MISCELLANEOUS
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STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER
Case No. 2:21-cv-09669-SPG-RAO

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

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any person to seek its modification by the Court in the future.
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 Local Civil Rule 79-5. Protected Material

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

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

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

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information in the public record unless otherwise instructed by the court.

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13.

FINAL DISPOSITION

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

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60 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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STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER
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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

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

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

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was issued by the United States District Court for the Central District of California

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on [date] in the case of Felipe Aquino Rodriguez and Elida Ramos Marquez v.

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Nissan North America, Inc., No. 2:21-cv-09669-SPG-RAO. I agree to comply

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with and to be bound by all the terms of this Stipulated Protective Order and I

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understand and acknowledge that failure to so comply could expose me to

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sanctions and punishment in the nature of contempt. I solemnly promise that I will

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not disclose in any manner any information or item that is subject to this Stipulated

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Protective Order to any person or entity except in strict compliance with the

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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 enforcing the terms of this Stipulated

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Protective Order, even if such enforcement proceedings occur after termination of

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this action. I hereby appoint __________________________ [print or type full

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name] of _______________________________________ [print or type full

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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

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Stipulated Protective Order.

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Date: ______________________________________

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City and State where sworn and signed: _________________________________

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Printed name: _______________________________

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Signature: __________________________________
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STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER
Case No. 2:21-cv-09669-SPG-RAO