Frederick v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. et al

Filing 22

ORDER that the parties shall comply with LR 10-5(b) and the Ninth Circuits opinion in Kamakana, 447 F.3d 1172 (9th Cir. 2006), when filing documents under seal. Signed by Magistrate Judge Peggy A. Leen on 12/3/2014. (Copies have been distributed pursuant to the NEF - SLR)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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DISTRICT OF NEVADA

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***

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TERESA FREDERICK,

Case No. 2:14-cv-01602-GMN-PAL

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Plaintiff,

ORDER

v.
WAL-MART STORES, INC., et al.,
Defendants.

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Before the court is the parties= Stipulated Protective Order (Dkt. #20), which the court

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approved to facilitate discovery in this case. This order also reminds counsel that there is a

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presumption of public access to judicial files and records. A party seeking to file a confidential

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document under seal must file a motion to seal and must comply with the Ninth Circuit=s

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directives in Kamakana v. City and County of Honolulu, 447 F.3d 1172 (9th Cir. 2006).

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The court has adopted electronic filing procedures, and with a few exceptions not

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applicable here, the Clerk of the Court no longer maintains paper records. Special Order 109

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requires the Clerk of the Court to maintain the official files for all cases filed on or after

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November 7, 2005, in electronic form. The electronic record constitutes the official record of the

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court. Attorneys must file documents under seal using the court’s electronic filing procedures.

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See LR 10-5(b). That rule provides:

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Unless otherwise permitted by statute, rule or prior Court order,
papers filed with the Court under seal shall be accompanied by a
motion for leave to file those documents under seal, and shall be
filed in accordance with the Court=s electronic filing procedures. If
papers are filed under seal pursuant to prior Court order, the papers
shall bear the following notation on the first page, directly under the
case number: AFILED UNDER SEAL PURSUANT TO COURT
ORDER DATED __________.@ All papers filed under seal will
remain sealed until such time as the Court may deny the motion to
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seal or enter an order to unseal them, or the documents are unsealed
pursuant to Local Rule.

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The court has approved the parties= blanket protective order to facilitate their discovery

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exchanges. However, the parties have not shown, and court has not found, that any specific

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documents are secret or confidential. The parties have not provided specific facts supported by

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affidavits or concrete examples to establish that a protective order is required to protect any

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specific trade secret or other confidential information under Rule 26(c) or that disclosure would

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cause an identifiable and significant harm. The Ninth Circuit has held that there is a presumption

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of public access to judicial files and records and that parties seeking to maintain the

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confidentiality of documents attached to non-dispositive motions must show good cause exists to

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overcome the presumption of public access.1 See Kamakana 447 F.3d at 1179. Parties seeking

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to maintain the secrecy of documents attached to dispositive motions must show compelling

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reasons sufficient to overcome the presumption of public access. Id. at 1180.

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Accordingly,

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IT IS ORDERED that the parties shall comply with LR 10-5(b) and the Ninth Circuit’s

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opinion in Kamakana, 447 F.3d 1172 (9th Cir. 2006), when filing documents under seal.

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Dated this 3rd day of December, 2014.

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PEGGY A. LEEN
UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

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The court modified the last sentence of Paragraph 9 of the Stipulated Protective Order to reflect
the different standards a party must meet to file a document under seal, depending on the
underlying motion’s status as dispositive or non-dispositive.
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