Postiglione et al v. Lowe's Home Centers, LLC

Filing 10

STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER signed by Magistrate Judge Edmund F. Brennan on 6/15/2018. (Zignago, K.)

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CHARLES D. MAY, ESQ.; STATE BAR NO.: 129663
STEPHANIE FORMAN, ESQ.; STATE BAR NO.: 195757
DIANA M. RIVERA, ESQ.; STATE BAR NO.: 222025
THARPE & HOWELL, LLP
15250 Ventura Blvd,, Ninth Floor
Sherman Oaks, California 91403
[phone]; [phone] fax
E-Mail: [e-mail]
E-Mail: [e-mail]
E-Mail: [e-mail]
Attorneys for Defendant,
LOWE’S HOME CENTERS, LLC,

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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THARPE & HOWELL, LLP
15250 Ventura Boulevard, Ninth Floor
Sherman Oaks, California 91403-3221

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EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA (SACRAMENTO DIVISION)

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PAULO POSTIGLIONE, M.D. and
SAYDA POSTIGLIONE,
Plaintiff,

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v.

CASE NO.: 2:18-CV-00320-KJM-EFB
(Placer County Superior Court Case No.:
SCV0040617)
[PROPOSED] STIPULATED PROTECTIVE
ORDER

LOWE’S HOME CENTERS, LLC,
dba LOWE’S HOME
IMPROVEMENT; and DOES 1
17 through 100, Inclusive,
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Defendants.

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Plaintiffs PAULO POSTIGLIONE and SAYDA POSTIGLIONE (“Plaintiffs”)

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and Defendant LOWE’S HOME CENTERS, LLC (“Lowe’s” or “Defendant”) jointly

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submit this Stipulated Protective Order pursuant to Federal Rules of Civil Procedure,

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Rule 26(c)(1) limiting the use and disposition of certain information and documents

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during litigation of this matter. The parties agree that discovery in this action may

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yield documents and information of a sensitive and confidential nature, including but

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not limited to, Defendant’s proprietary policies and procedures, personnel files of

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present and former employees, and other confidential information that may be subject

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to discovery in the proceedings in this matter but which should not be made available
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to the public generally (the “Confidential Documents”).
As a result, the parties have agreed to this jointly submitted Stipulated Protective
Order and request that it be adopted by order of this Court.
Good Cause Statement

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Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, Rule 26(c)(1) states in pertinent part, that the

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Court, upon a showing of good cause may “issue an order to protect a party from

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annoyance, embarrassment, oppression, or undue burden or expense.” Fed.R.Civ.P.

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26(c)(1).

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proprietary and confidential trade secret information relating to defendant’s business

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THARPE & HOWELL, LLP
15250 Ventura Boulevard, Ninth Floor
Sherman Oaks, California 91403-3221

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practices and its safety protocol. Defendant derives independent economic value from

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maintaining the confidentiality of the policies and procedures set forth in these

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Confidential Documents.

In the instant matter, Defendant’s Confidential Documents contain

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Defendant is a retailer in the home improvement industry and has conducted

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business in California since 1998. The home improvement retail industry is very

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competitive. As a result of years of investing time and money in research and

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investigation, defendant developed the policies contained in the Confidential

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Documents for the purposes of maintaining the security and accessibility of its

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merchandise, providing quality customer service, and ensuring the safety of its

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employees and customers. These policies and procedures, as memorialized in the

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Confidential Documents, were created and generated by Lowe’s for Lowe’s, and are

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used for the purposes of maintaining safety at its stores and creating efficient and

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organized work environments for its employees. As a result, defendant is able to

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minimize the waste of any resources, which is a key factor in generating profitability

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for its business.

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Defendant derives economic value from maintaining the secrecy of its

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Confidential Documents. If disclosed to the public, the trade secret information

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contained in defendant’s Confidential Documents would reveal defendant’s internal

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operations and could potentially be used by competitors as a means to compete for its
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customers, interfere with its business plans and thereby gain unfair business

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advantages. If Defendant’s safety protocol were revealed to the general public, it

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would hinder Defendant’s ability to effectively resolve and minimize liability claims,

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and its goal of protecting its customers and employees from theft and other crimes.

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Unrestricted or unprotected disclosure of such information would result in prejudice

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or harm to Defendant by revealing Lowe’s competitive confidential information,

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which has been developed at the expense of Lowe’s and which represents valuable

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tangible and intangible assets. Accordingly, the parties respectfully submit that there

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is good cause for the entry of this Protective Order.

THARPE & HOWELL, LLP
15250 Ventura Boulevard, Ninth Floor
Sherman Oaks, California 91403-3221

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Purpose and Limitation

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As mentioned above, disclosure and discovery activity in this action are likely

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to involve production of confidential, proprietary, or private information for which

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

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prosecuting this litigation may be warranted. Accordingly, the parties hereby stipulate

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to and petition the court to enter the following Stipulated Protective Order.

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The disclosure of any of the foregoing categories of information and/or

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documentation protected by this Order, including confidential business and financial

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information identified above, will have the effect of causing harm to the competitive

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and financial position of the person, firm, partnership, corporation, or to the

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organization from which the information was obtained. Unprotected disclosure of any

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of the above-identified confidential information may further expose Defendant to

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unwarranted annoyance, embarrassment, and/or oppression.

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The parties acknowledge that this Protective Order does not confer blanket

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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 that is

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entitled to confidential treatment under the applicable legal principles. The parties

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further acknowledge that this Protective Order does not entitle them to file confidential

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information under seal. Local Rule 141 sets forth the procedures that must be followed
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and the standards that will be applied when a party seeks permission from the court to

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file material under seal.

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The parties having agreed to the following terms governing the treatment of

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confidential information, and the Court having found that good cause exists for

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issuance of an appropriately-tailored confidentiality order governing the pre-trial

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phase of this action, it is HEREBY ORDERED as follows:

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1.

All documents produced or information disclosed and any other

documents or records designated as “CONFIDENTIAL” by the Defendant shall be

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revealed only to a settlement officer, Plaintiffs, counsel of record in this case,

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THARPE & HOWELL, LLP
15250 Ventura Boulevard, Ninth Floor
Sherman Oaks, California 91403-3221

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paralegals and secretarial employees under counsel’s direct supervision, and such

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persons as are employed by counsel to act as experts in this action. The information

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designated as “CONFIDENTIAL” and disclosed only in accord with the terms of this

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paragraph may include, without limitation, documents and information containing

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Defendant’s policies and procedures, as well as personnel records, including

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disciplinary records, identity, information relating to the processes, operations, type of

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work, or apparatus, or the production, sales, shipments, transfers, identification of

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customers, inventories, amount or source of income, profits, losses, expenditures, or

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any research, development, or any other commercial information supplied by the

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Defendant in response to Plaintiff’s Interrogatories or Requests for Production.

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Information and documentation considered “CONFIDENTIAL” are subject to

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protection under the Local Rules of the U.S. District Court – Eastern District of

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California, Rule 26 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, and under other provisions

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of Federal law.

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2.

Counsel for Plaintiffs shall use all documents and information produced

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or disclosed by the Defendant solely for the purposes of preparation for and trial of

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this action. Under no circumstances shall information or materials covered by this

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Protective Order be disclosed to anyone other than Plaintiffs’ counsel of record in this

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action, paralegals, secretarial employees under counsel’s direct supervision, such
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persons employed to act as experts in this action, and the court and its personnel. At

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the conclusion of the proceedings in this action, all documents and information subject

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to this Order, including any copies or extracts or summaries thereof, or documents

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containing information taken therefrom, shall be returned to counsel for the Defendant,

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at defense counsel’s written request.

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3.

Prior to disclosure of any documents designated as “confidential” to

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paralegals or secretarial employees of counsel for Plaintiffs, counsel for Plaintiffs shall

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require such employees to read this Protective Order and agree to be bound by its

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terms.

THARPE & HOWELL, LLP
15250 Ventura Boulevard, Ninth Floor
Sherman Oaks, California 91403-3221

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4.

If counsel for Plaintiffs determines that for purposes of this action,

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documents or information produced by the Defendant and designated as “confidential”

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must be revealed to a person employed to act as an expert in this action, then counsel

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may reveal the designated documents or information to such person, after first

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complying with the following:

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(a)

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Counsel for the Plaintiffs shall have the expert read this Order and shall
explain the contents thereof to such expert.

(b)

Counsel for the Plaintiffs shall require such expert to sign a copy of this

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protective order that states: “I have read and understood the terms of this

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protective order. I further agree to be bound by its terms.” Nothing in

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this paragraph shall be deemed to enlarge the right of Defendant to

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conduct discovery of any of Plaintiffs’ experts, except solely with respect

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to the ability of such expert to protect confidential information and

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documents from re-disclosure.

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5.

In accordance with Local Rule 141, if any papers to be filed with the

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Court contain information and/or documents that have been designated as

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“Confidential,” the proposed filing shall be accompanied by a “Notice of Request to

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Seal Documents.” For motions, the parties shall publicly file a redacted version of the

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motion and supporting papers, in accordance with Local Rule 140. Without written
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permission from the party that designated the material as confidential or a court order secured after

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appropriate notice to all interested persons, a party may not file in the public record in this action any

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Protected Material. Rather, Protected Material may only be filed under seal pursuant to a court order

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authorizing the sealing of the specific Protected Material at issue. However, the designation of

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material as confidential, without more, is insufficient to obtain a sealing order. Any party that seeks

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to file Protected Material under seal must comply with Local Rule 141, which governs motions for

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a sealing order. As provided in Local Rule 141, a sealing order will issue only upon a request

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establishing that the Protected Material at issue is privileged, protectable as a trade secret, or

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otherwise entitled to protection under the law. Further, the briefing on the motion for a sealing order

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THARPE & HOWELL, LLP
15250 Ventura Boulevard, Ninth Floor
Sherman Oaks, California 91403-3221

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shall address U.S. Supreme Court and Ninth Circuit standards for whether the material may be filed

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under seal. Regardless of which party files the motion for a sealing order, the party that designated

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the material as confidential shall file a brief addressing those standards, and shall have the burden of

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establishing that the Protected Material should be filed but not made publicly available. If a motion

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to file Protected Material under seal pursuant to Local Rule 141 is denied by the court, the moving

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party may file the material in the public record, unless instructed differently by the court.

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6.

The Court’s Order is subject to revocation and modification by Order of

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the Court upon written stipulation of the parties, or upon motion and reasonable notice,

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including opportunity for hearing and presentation of evidence.

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7.

This Order does not apply to the Court and court personnel, who are

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subject only to the Court’s internal procedures regarding the handling of material filed

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or lodged, including material filed or lodged under seal.

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8.

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

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

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Based on the foregoing, Plaintiffs PAULO POSTIGLIONE and SAYDA

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POSTIGLIONE, and Defendant LOWE’S HOME CENTERS, LLC hereby request

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that this Court issue a protective order governing the treatment of confidential

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information in this matter.

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IT IS SO STIPULATED.
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Dated:

Law Offices of Steven H. Schultz

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By: signature on original
Steven H. Schultz
Attorney for Plaintiffs,
PAULO POSTIGLIONE and
SAYDA POSTIGLIONE

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Dated:

Tharpe & Howell, LLP

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By: signature on original
Charles D. May
Stephanie Forman
Diana M. Rivera
Attorneys for Defendant,
LOWE’S HOME CENTERS, LLC

THARPE & HOWELL, LLP
15250 Ventura Boulevard, Ninth Floor
Sherman Oaks, California 91403-3221

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FOR GOOD CAUSE SHOWN, IT IS SO ORDERED.

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DATED: June 15, 2018.

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