Robertson v. Metro Wastewater Reclamation District

Filing 17

STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER by Magistrate Judge Boyd N. Boland on 3/10/14. (Simmons, B.)

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLORADO

Civil Action No. 13-cv-2926-PAB-BNB
APRIL ROBERTSON,
Plaintiff,
v.
METRO WASTEWATER RECLAMATION DISTRICT,

Defendant.

STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER

Plaintiff April Robertson and Defendant Metro Wastewater Reclamation District by and
through their undersigned counsel, have stipulated to the terms of this Order. Upon a showing of
good cause in support of the entry of a protective order to protect the discovery and
dissemination of confidential information or information that will improperly annoy, embarrass,
or oppress any party, witness, or person providing discovery in this case, IT IS ORDERED:
RECITALS & THRESHOLD GOOD CAUSE SHOWING
1.

Plaintiff has sued Defendant for a violation of her rights under the Title VII, 42

U.S.C. §20000e for religious discrimination and retaliation. Defendant denies all liability on these
claims.
2.

Given the nature of the case, there is good cause to believe that discovery may

involve the disclosure of confidential information, with possible personally identifiable
information about current and former employees of the Metro Wastewater Reclamation District,
personnel records of other current and former employees of the Metro Wastewater Reclamation
District, as well as medical records, among other things, all of which normally are required to be
maintained confidentially. A blanket protective order therefore is appropriate in this case, and a

document-by-document showing is not required. See Gillard v. Boulder Valley Sch. Dist. Re-2,
196 F.R.D. 382, 386 (D. Colo. 2000).
3.

Based on these recitals and the terms of disclosure that follow, the Parties have

agreed to this Stipulated Protective Order to facilitate the efficient production of information that the
producing party may claim in good faith is entitled to confidential treatment, while at the same time
protecting the Parties’ interests in the confidential treatment of that information and the full and fair
disclosure of discoverable information in this action.
DEFINITIONS AND TERMS
1.

This Protective Order shall apply to all documents, materials, and information,

including without limitation, documents produced, answers to interrogatories, responses to
requests for admission, deposition testimony, and other information disclosed pursuant to the
disclosure or discovery duties created by the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.
2.

As used in this Protective Order, "document" is defined as provided in Fed. R.

Civ. P. 34(a). A draft or non-identical copy is a separate document within the meaning of this
term.
3.

Information designated "Confidential" shall be information that is deemed by the

parties after a good-faith review to be confidential in that it implicates common law and/or
statutory privacy interests, for instance, of (a) current or former Metro Wastewater Reclamation
District employees, and/or (b) Plaintiff. Confidential information shall not be disclosed or used
for any purpose except the preparation and trial of this case.
4.

Any party to this action, after a good-faith review and determination that a document

or other material contains confidential information, may designate that document or material as
“Confidential” after entry of this Order by conspicuously stamping or labeling the document or
material with the word “Confidential” or “Subject to Protective Order”. Documents or material
produced by either party shall not be treated as confidential pursuant to this Order unless they are

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stamped or labeled in such a fashion except as provided in this Order. The inadvertent failure to
designate material as “Confidential” does not preclude a party from subsequently making such a
designation in good faith, and, in that case, the material is treated as confidential only after being
properly designated.
a.

Parties to this action may in good faith designate deposition testimony as

“Confidential” by advising opposing counsel of record, in writing, within 21 days after receipt of a
copy of the transcript, or such other time period as may be mutually agreed upon by the parties, of
the pages and lines of the deposition which the party believes in good faith are confidential.
Alternatively, any party may, on the record at the deposition, designate deposition testimony as
Confidential by advising all persons present that the party believes that the portion of the deposition
in question falls under the scope of this Order.
b.

In the case of mutually agreed upon joint witness interviews (should any be

agreed to), by a statement of counsel during the interview in the presence of other counsel attending,
if any, and, following the interview, by a letter to such counsel, if any, that such interview or any
portion thereof is “Confidential.”
c.

In the case of any other production of discovery materials not otherwise

specifically identified above, including, but not limited to, computer storage devices, a written
statement made by counsel of the designating party to counsel for the other Party to this action, that
such discovery material or any portion thereof is “Confidential.”
d.

The Parties to this Order may modify the procedures set forth in paragraphs

4(a)-(c) hereof through agreement of counsel on the record at such deposition or, in the case of an
interview, in the presence of counsel attending such interview, without further order of the Court.
5.

Any documents or interrogatory answers that are marked as Confidential are to be

treated as such by the party receiving the discovery and shall be utilized by such party only for the

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prosecution or defense of this case. Except as agreed upon by the Parties, or ordered by the Court,
disclosure of such material or information contained therein is limited to:
(a)

The Parties or representatives of the District;

(b)

Their counsel, counsel’s legal and clerical assistants and staff;

(c)

Persons with prior knowledge of the documents or the Confidential Information
contained therein;

(d)

Court personnel, including court reporters, persons operating video recording
equipment at depositions, and any special master or mediator appointed by the
Court;

(e)

Any independent document reproduction services or document or video recording
and retrieval services;

(g)

Deposition witnesses questioned by outside counsel of record for a Party in
connection with this action, but only to the extent necessary to assist such counsel in
the prosecution or defense of this action, and provided that such witness is advised of
and agrees to be bound by the terms of this Order;
(h)

An author or recipient of the Confidential Discovery Material to be

disclosed, summarized, described, characterized or otherwise communicated or
made available, but only to the extent necessary to assist counsel in the prosecution
or defense of this action;
(i)

The claims counsel or representative of any insurer of any Party to this

action, provided that such disclosure is made only in connection with a claim for a
defense or indemnity arising from this action; and
(j)

Any expert witness or outside consultant retained or consulted by the Parties.

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Counsel shall advise all persons to whom discovery materials are disclosed pursuant to this
paragraph of the existence of this Order, and they shall agree to be bound prior to sharing this
Confidential Information with them.
6.

A Party may object to the designation of particular Confidential Information by

giving written notice to the Party designating the disputed information. The written notice shall
identify the information to which the objection is made. If the Parties cannot resolve the objection
within ten (10) business days after the time the notice is received, it shall be the obligation of the
Party designating the information as confidential to file an appropriate motion requesting that the
Court determine whether the disputed information should be subject to the terms of this Protective
Order. If such a motion is timely filed, the disputed information shall be treated as confidential
under the terms of this Protective Order until the Court rules on the motion. If the designating Party
fails to file such a motion within the prescribed time, the disputed information shall lose its
designation as confidential and shall not thereafter be treated as confidential in accordance with this
Protective Order. In connection with a motion filed under this provision, the Party designating the
information as confidential shall bear the burden of establishing that good cause exists for the
disputed information to be treated as confidential.
7.

This Order is binding upon the Parties, their agents and employees, all counsel for

the Parties and their agents and employees, and all persons to whom disclosure of discovery
materials or testimony are limited pursuant to the terms of this Order. Nothing in this Order shall
preclude any Party from filing a motion seeking further or different protection from the Court under
the Federal Rules Of Civil Procedure, or from filing a motion with respect to the manner in which
confidential discovery material shall be treated at trial. This stipulation shall be binding on the
Parties prior to its entry as an Order. Should the Court not enter this stipulation as an Order, it shall
remain binding upon the Parties until such time as the Court enters a different protective order
providing substantially similar protections to those contained in this stipulation.

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8.

Any request to restrict access must comply with the requirments of

D.C.COLO.LCivR 7.2. The Parties and their counsel shall exercise reasonable care not to disclose
information contained in these confidential documents by placing them in the public record in this
case. If a Party wishes to use any confidential information in any affidavit, brief, memorandum, oral
argument, or other paper filed in this Court in this case, such paper or transcript must be submitted
to the Court with a motion to seal in accordance with D.C.COLO.LCivR 7.2. The Parties and their
counsel, however, have the right to use any such information contained in these documents, or the
documents themselves, in depositions and the trial of this case. The Parties do not waive any right
to object at trial to the admissibility of any document, which falls under the scope of this Order, or
portion thereof, or the right to file a motion in limine regarding the use of any such documents.
Additionally, nothing in this Stipulated Protective Order is intended, nor shall it be construed, as
either a waiver or an admission that any documents or information are admissible or contain either
confidential, proprietary business information, or trade secrets. This Protective Order is simply a
procedural framework to facilitate the discovery processes and/or provide protections concerning
documents and information exchanged between and among the Parties and non-parties in this case.
No part of this agreement shall be used in this action or any other action as evidence that any Party
has either waived or admitted to any claims solely by virtue of the act of designating documents or
information as confidential.
9.

Upon termination of this litigation, including any appeals, each Party’s counsel shall

continue to hold the information confidential. Further, the termination of this action shall not relieve
counsel or other persons obligated hereunder from their responsibility to maintain the confidentiality
of Confidential Information pursuant to this Protective Order, and the Court shall retain continuing
jurisdiction to enforce the terms of this Protective Order, even after this action is terminated.
10.

This Protective Order may be modified by the Court at any time for good cause

shown following notice to all Parties and an opportunity for them to be heard.

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11.

The Parties agree that in the event information or documentation is inadvertently

disclosed to an opposing party, any information or documentation so disclosed shall be immediately
returned to the producing party without any copies being made or notes being taken regarding said
information/documentation by those who have received the inadvertent disclosure. Further, the
Parties agree that no recipient of inadvertently disclosed information or documentation shall utilize
such information/documentation or any fruits derived therefrom for the purposes of this litigation
and that the inadvertent disclosure of information or documentation shall not constitute a waiver of
any privilege that may otherwise apply.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
Dated March 10, 2014.
BY THE COURT:
s/ Boyd N. Boland
United States Magistrate Judge

APPROVED, March ___, 2014:
s/ John W. McKendree
John W. McKendree, Esq.
Offices of John W. McKendree
Lawyer and Consultant
7582 E. 121st Drive
Thornton, CO 80602
Phone Number: [phone]
[e-mail]
Attorney for Plaintiff

s/

Marni

Nathan

Kloster

J. Andrew Nathan
Marni Nathan Kloster
NATHAN, BREMER, DUMM & MYERS, P.C.
7900 E. Union Avenue, Suite 600
Denver, CO 80237-2776
Phone Number: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
[e-mail]
[e-mail]
Attorneys for Defendant

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