Beverly A. Richardson v. Aetna Health of California Inc., et al

Filing 33

STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER by Magistrate Judge Jay C. Gandhi re Joint Stipulation for Protective Order 32 (kh)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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BEVERLY A. RICHARDSON,
individually, and on behalf of other
members of the general public similarly
situated,
Plaintiff,

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Gibson, Dunn &
Crutcher LLP

v.
AETNA HEALTH OF CALIFORNIA,
INC., a California corporation,
STRATEGIC RESOURCE COMPANY
(SRC), AN AETNA COMPANY, and
DOES 1-100, inclusive,
Defendants.

Case No.: 8:17-cv-0377 JVS (JCGx)

STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER

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IT IS HEREBY ORDERED as follows by this Court:

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1.

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The following definitions shall apply to this Order:

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Definitions.

a.

“Confidential Information” shall mean any trade secrets, any

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confidential commercial or financial information, any Confidential Health Information,

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or any other information that any Party to the Litigation or any Producing Party may

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reasonably characterize as confidential and that has not previously been made available

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to the public.

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b.

“Confidential Health Information” shall constitute a subset of

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Confidential Information, and shall mean information supplied in any form, or any

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portion thereof, that identifies an individual or subscriber in any manner and relates to

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the past, present, or future care, services, or supplies relating to the physical or mental

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health or condition of such individual or subscriber, the provision of health care to

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such individual or subscriber, or the past, present, or future payment for the provision

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of health care to such individual or subscriber. Confidential Health Information

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includes, but is not limited to, medical bills, claims forms, charge sheets, medical

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records, medical charts, test results, notes, dictation, invoices, itemized billing

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statements, remittance advice forms, explanations of benefits, checks, notices, and

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requests, as well as any summaries or compilations of the information contained in

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these documents, to the extent that such summaries or compilations themselves include

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Confidential Health Information. Confidential Health Information is intended to

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encompass all “protected health information” as such term is defined by the Standards

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for Privacy of Individually Identifiable Health Information, 45 C.F.R. Parts 160 and

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164, promulgated pursuant to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act.

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c.

“Documents” shall mean all written records, electronically stored

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information, or graphic material whatsoever, including, without limitation, any

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meaning reasonably given to such term in any written discovery request.

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d.

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“Legend” as used herein shall mean a stamp or similar insignia

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stating “CONFIDENTIAL” or other appropriate term or terms connoting the

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confidentiality of the document. When any document is designated “Confidential”

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pursuant to this Protective Order, the Legend shall be affixed to the cover of such

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document and to any page therein containing Confidential Information.
e.

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appeal therefrom through final judgment.
f.

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“Producing Party” shall mean any Party to the Litigation, or any

other person or entity producing documents, information or other materials in the
Litigation.
g.

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“Litigation” shall refer to the above-captioned matter and any

“Parties” shall mean Plaintiff Beverly A. Richardson and Defendant

Aetna Life Insurance Company.

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2.

Scope of Application.

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This Protective Order shall govern all documents and other information and

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materials generated or produced in response to any discovery conducted by any Party

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to the Litigation pursuant to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and the Local Rules

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of this Court. Further, this Order shall govern all documents and materials containing

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Confidential Information that are submitted in connection with a pleading, brief, or

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other document filed with this Court. This Order shall not govern the use or

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admissibility of any evidence at trial or the procedures for using such documents or

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information at trial. The Parties shall confer and attempt to agree before any hearing,

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trial, or other proceeding on the procedures to be included in a protective order

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pursuant to which Confidential Information may be introduced into evidence or

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otherwise used at such hearing, trial, or other proceeding. Absent agreement, the Court

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shall be asked to issue an order governing the use of information in the context of such

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proceedings.

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This Court shall retain jurisdiction to resolve all disputes relating to this

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Protective Order. This Protective Order shall not prevent any Party from seeking to

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amend, modify, or revise this Protective Order in the above-captioned matter.

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3.

Designation and Limitations on Use of Confidential Information.
a.

Designation as “Confidential Information.” A Producing Party may

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designate any document or portion thereof that contains Confidential Information as

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“Confidential” pursuant to this Order by affixing the Legend as provided under

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subparagraph 1(d) to any document containing, or that the Producing Party believes

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contains, Confidential Information. If, through inadvertence, a Producing Party

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produces any document or portion thereof that contains Confidential Information but

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fails to designate the document as “Confidential” pursuant to this Order by affixing the

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Legend as provided under paragraph 1(d), the Producing Party may subsequently

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designate the document as “Confidential” as long as it does so within ten (10) business

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days of production of such document. A Producing Party may also designate

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documents as Confidential by advising counsel of record to whom the documents are

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to be produced, in writing, of the Bates numbers of the documents that are designated

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Confidential pursuant to this Order.

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b.

Limitations on Use of Confidential Information. All documents,

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material, or information in this Litigation that are designated “Confidential” may be

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used only for purposes of the conduct of this Litigation to include discovery, motions,

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briefs, preparation for trial, trial, and on appeal, if any, and for no other purpose

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(“Permitted Purpose”). Confidential Information and any summaries, charts or notes

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made therefrom, and any facts or information contained therein or derived therefrom

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and from no other source, shall be disclosed only to the Court (as provided for in

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paragraph 8 below) and to:

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(1)

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Parties to the Litigation and the employees, officers, agents

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and directors of such Parties only to the extent necessary for

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the Permitted Purpose;
(2)

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counsel for the Parties hereto and their paralegals, litigation

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support staff and outside copying services, or other

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secretarial and clerical employees only to the extent

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necessary for the Permitted Purpose;
(3)

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employees, officers and directors of independent contractors,
experts, consultants, or advisors who are employed or

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retained by, or consulted about retention on behalf of, any of

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the Parties or counsel for the Parties hereto only to the extent

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necessary for the Permitted Purpose (but excluding any

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person directly and currently employed or engaged by a

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current or prospective competitor of a Party1);
(4)

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deponents and their counsel who have a reasonable need to

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review this material during the course of, or in connection

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with, depositions taken in or for the Litigation;
(5)

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stenographic reporters who are involved in depositions, the

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trial or any hearings or proceedings before the Court in the

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Litigation;
(6)

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third-party witnesses in the Litigation who reasonably need

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to review this material prior to or in connection with

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potential testimony in the Litigation;
(7)

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the persons listed on the document as authors or recipients
(including copyees);

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The Parties will confer regarding the identities of current or prospective competitors
and will confer further in the event any issue arises concerning Confidential
Material under this provision.

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(8)

the Court and its personnel; and

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(9)

any mediator or settlement officer, and their supporting

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personnel, mutually agreed upon by any of the parties

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engaged in settlement discussions.

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Unless the Producing Party agrees otherwise, Confidential Information may be

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disclosed to persons referred to in this subparagraph only after such persons have been

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advised of the terms and operation of this Order and have agreed to be bound by its

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terms. Persons listed in (3), (4), (6) or (9) of this paragraph shall be required to sign a

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Written Assurance in the format attached hereto as Exhibit A prior to disclosure to

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them of Confidential Information. A copy of each executed Written Assurance shall

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be retained by counsel of record for the Party obtaining the Written Assurance. A

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Party may make such application to the Court for disclosure of a copy of the executed

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Written Assurance(s) and the Court will grant such an application upon good cause

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shown, except that a Party need not disclose a copy of an executed Written Assurance

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if doing so would tend to reveal the identities of experts retained by a Party the

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disclosure of whom is not required by the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, unless

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ordered by the Court. This subparagraph shall not prevent a Producing Party from

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disclosing its own Confidential Information to any person, including its counsel and

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their partners, associates, paralegals, and clerical and litigation support personnel.

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c.

Treatment of Confidential Health Information. Confidential Health

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Information shall constitute a subset of Confidential Information, and shall be

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designated as Confidential and subject to all other terms and conditions governing the

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treatment of Confidential Information, as set forth in subparagraphs (a)-(b) of this

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paragraph. “Confidential Health Information” shall include, but is not limited to,

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records that contain any of the following subscriber, patient, or member identifiers:

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(1)

names;

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(2)

all geographic subdivisions smaller than a State, including

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street address, city, county, precinct, and zip code;

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(3)

all elements of dates (except year) for dates directly related to

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an individual, including birth date, admission date, discharge

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date, age, and date of death;

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(4)

telephone numbers;

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(5)

fax numbers;

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(6)

electronic mail addresses;

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(7)

social security numbers;

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(8)

medical record numbers;

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(9)

health plan beneficiary numbers;

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(10) account numbers;

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(11) certificate/license numbers;

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(l2)

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vehicle identifiers and serial numbers, including license plate
numbers;

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(13) device identifiers and serial numbers;

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(14) web universal resource locators (“URLs”);

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(15) internet protocol (“IP”) address numbers;

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(17) biometric identifiers, including finger and voice prints;

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(18) full face photographic images and any comparable images;

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and
(19) any other unique identifying number, characteristic, or code.
The Producing Party may, but is not required to, redact the above identifiers in

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order to protect the privacy of its members, subscribers, or patients, but only to the

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extent such redaction does not result in prejudice to another Party in the Litigation.

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This subparagraph shall not prevent a Producing Party from disclosing its own

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Confidential Health Information to any person, including its counsel and their partners,

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associates, paralegals, and clerical and Litigation support personnel.

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However, nothing in this Joint Stipulated Protective Order Permits a Party to
withhold the identity and contact information (names, addresses, telephone numbers,

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fax numbers and electronic mail addresses) of any witnesses. The identity and contact

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information of putative class members in the possession of Defendant will be

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separately addressed by the Parties and/or the Court, and by entering into this

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protective order, none of the Parties waive (and they expressly reserve all of) their

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respective rights, contentions, and/or objections regarding the disclosure of putative

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class member identifying and contact information.

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4.

Designation of Documents Produced by Third Parties.

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Any Party may designate as “Confidential” any document that is produced or

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disclosed without such designation by any third party, within ten (10) business days of

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production of such document (or such other time as may be agreed), provided that such

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document contains Confidential Information of a designating Party and was given to

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the non-Party on a confidential basis, in the following manner:

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a.

Parties to the Litigation may designate such document by sending

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written notice of such designation, accompanied by copies of the designated document

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bearing the Legend, to all other Parties in possession or custody of such previously

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undesignated document or by reference to a Bates number of the document. Any Party

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receiving such notice and copy of the designated document pursuant to this

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subparagraph shall, within ten (10) business days of receipt of such notice (or such

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other time as may be agreed), return to the designating Party all undesignated copies of

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such document in their custody or possession, or alternately shall affix the Legend to

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all copies of such designated document in their custody or possession.

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b.

Upon notice of designation pursuant to this paragraph, Parties shall

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also: (i) make no further disclosure of such designated document or information

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contained therein except as allowed under this Order; (ii) take reasonable steps to

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notify any persons who were provided copies of such designated document of the

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terms of this Order; and (iii) take reasonable steps to reclaim any such designated

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document in the possession of any person not permitted access to such information

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under the terms of this Order.
c.

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The Parties shall serve a copy of this Order simultaneously with

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any discovery request made to a non-Party. For any discovery that was served on a

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non-Party prior to the date of this Protective Order, the Party who served the discovery

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shall provide the non-Party with a copy of this Protective Order within five (5)

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business days of the date this Order is entered by the Court.

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5.

Designation of Transcripts.
a.

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In the case of Confidential Information revealed during a deposition

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or hearing, if designation of a portion of a transcript, including exhibits, is made by a

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statement by counsel on the record, or is otherwise made before the stenographer

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transcribing such deposition or hearing has disseminated to counsel for the Parties the

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transcript thereof, the stenographer shall affix the appropriate Legend to the cover page

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and all appropriate pages of the transcript, and to each copy thereof.
b.

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If a deposition or hearing transcript has not previously been

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designated as “Confidential” prior to its preparation by the stenographer, counsel for a

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Party may alternatively designate a deposition or hearing transcript or a portion

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thereof, disclosing, containing or referring to any Confidential Document or

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Confidential Information hereunder as “Confidential” by informing counsel for all

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other Parties to this action in writing within ten (10) business days after receipt of the

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transcript (or such other time as may be agreed), as to the specific pages deemed

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Confidential, and thereafter such pages shall constitute Confidential Documents

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pursuant to this Order. Upon receipt of such notice, any Party in possession of copies

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of such designated transcript shall affix the appropriate Legend thereto. Until the

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receipt of such designation, the transcript shall be presumed to not contain Confidential

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Information.

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Copies.

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All copies of any Confidential Documents shall also constitute and be treated as

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Confidential Documents as provided in this Order. Any person making, or causing to

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be made, copies of any Confidential Documents shall make certain that each such copy

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bears the Legend pursuant to the requirements of this Order. Nothing herein shall

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preclude any arrangement among the Parties by which documents or other materials

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may be copied by the Producing Party.

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7.

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Filing Confidential Information With Redactions and Under Seal.

Confidential Information may be referred to in interrogatories, interrogatory

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answers, motions, briefs, or other papers filed with the Court and may be used in

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depositions, oral arguments, or at trial in this action, either as exhibits or as the basis

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for questions. In any motion, brief, or other papers filed with the Court referring to

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Confidential Information, any document or paper that contains Confidential

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Information shall be filed with an Application for Leave to File Under Seal, pursuant

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Local Rule 79-5 of the Local Rules of the United States District Court, Central District

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of California. In addition, the Party filing the document or paper with the Court shall

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endeavor to redact or otherwise exclude from the filing any Confidential Information

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not directly pertinent to that Party’s filing, pursuant to Local Rule 5.2-1 of this District

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Court.

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Objections to Designation.

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Any Party (the “Requesting Party”) may request in writing that any information

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or document designated as “Confidential” be released from the requirements of this

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Stipulated Protective Order, and, unless otherwise agreed in writing, the Producing

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Party shall meet and confer with the Requesting Party within fifteen (15) business days

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of a written request. The written request shall specifically identify the information or

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document challenged by the Requesting Party (by Bates numbers) and include a

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statement of the legal or factual basis for each objection. If an agreement cannot be

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reached by negotiation and the Court has not provided for a different procedure to

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handle such disputes, then the Producing Party must make an application within twenty

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(20) business days of the meet and confer session for a ruling from the Court on the

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continued application of the “Confidential” designation of such information or

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document. In the event that such application is made, the information or document

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shall be submitted to the Court under seal for the Court’s review, and the terms of this

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Stipulated Protective Order shall continue to apply to such information or document

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until the Court rules on the application. If such an application is not made by that time,

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the document or information in dispute shall no longer be deemed as Confidential

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Information.

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Objections Not Waived.

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Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained herein, all objections,

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including any discovery or evidentiary objections, are reserved and are not waived by

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any terms of this Order.

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Subpoena of Confidential Documents.

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If at any time any document or information protected by this Order is

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subpoenaed by any court, administrative or legislative body, or is requested by any

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other person or entity purporting to have authority to require the production of such

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information, the Party to whom the subpoena or other request is directed shall

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immediately give written notice thereof to any Producing Party that has designated

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such information “Confidential,” so as to advise such person of the need to promptly

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obtain a protective order or a notice to quash the subpoena if the Producing Party

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believes such is necessary. The burden shall be on the Producing Party to timely file a

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motion for protective order to quash. During the pendency of any such motion, the

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Parties in possession of Confidential Information shall not produce the Confidential

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Information.

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Continuation of Protection After Disposition.
a.

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The termination of proceedings in the Litigation shall not relieve

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the Parties from the obligation of maintaining the confidentiality of all Confidential

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Documents and Confidential Information produced and designated pursuant to this

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Order, unless the Court orders or permits otherwise. This Court shall retain continuing

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jurisdiction beyond the conclusion of this Litigation, including without limitation

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during any appeal, to enforce the provisions of this Order, pursuant to its contempt

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powers and with all other powers provided for in this Order.
b.

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Upon the final disposition of the Litigation, and a written notice

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from the Producing Party in that matter, the attorneys for the other Parties shall, at their

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option, either (a) return to the Producing Party from whom it was obtained any

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document that has been designated “Confidential” and copies thereof, including any

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such copies disclosed to persons identified in subparagraph 3(b), within thirty (30)

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business days; or (b) destroy all documents that have been designated “Confidential”

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and provide a certification of the steps taken to that effect within thirty (30) business

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days. Notwithstanding this provision, the Parties to the Litigation may keep a

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complete set of deposition transcripts, all documents filed or lodged with the Court,

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that may include documents designated “Confidential”, and any attorney work product,

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provided such information is stored in a manner so as to preserve its confidentiality.

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Notices.

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All notices that this Order requires to be sent to a particular Party shall be mailed

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via overnight mail to counsel for that Party at the address listed on the ECF Civil

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Docket Page for this case.

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13.

Inadvertent Production

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EXHIBIT A

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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BEVERLY A. RICHARDSON,
individually, and on behalf of other
members of the general public similarly
situated,

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Plaintiff,

Case No.: 8:17-cv-0377 JVS (JCGx)

ACKNOWLEDGMENT REGARDING
STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER

v.
AETNA HEALTH OF CALIFORNIA,
INC., a California corporation,
STRATEGIC RESOURCE COMPANY
(SRC), AN AETNA COMPANY, and
DOES 1-100, inclusive,

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Defendants.

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I, ________________________________________, hereby declare that:
1.

I have received a copy of the Stipulated Protective Order in the above-

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captioned action. I have carefully read and understand the provisions of the Stipulated

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Protective Order.

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2.

I agree that I will be bound by and will comply with all provisions of the

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Stipulated Protective Order in my treatment of Confidential Material designated,

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marked, or otherwise indicated to me to be “Confidential.” I will hold in confidence

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and will not disclose to anyone any Confidential Material, including copies,

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summaries, abstracts, excerpts, indexes or descriptions thereof, except pursuant to the

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terms of the Stipulated Protective Order. I agree that I will only use such information

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for purposes of this action and not for any business or competitive purpose.

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3.

I will return all Confidential Material that comes into my possession, and

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all documents and things that I have prepared relating to or reflecting such

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information, to outside counsel for the party by whom I am employed or retained or

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from whom I received such material within thirty (30) days of termination of this

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action by settlement or final judgment, including exhaustion of all appeals, or within

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thirty (30) days of the conclusion of my involvement in the action, whichever is

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sooner.

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4.

I agree to submit to the jurisdiction of this Court for the purpose of

enforcement of the Stipulated Protective Order.
5.

I state under penalty of perjury that the foregoing is true and correct.

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Executed on ____________________.

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________________________________

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[Signature]

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