Blaker v. Emil Capital Partners et al

Filing 43

STIPULATION AND PROTECTIVE ORDER...regarding procedures to be followed that shall govern the handling of confidential material... (Signed by Judge Vernon S. Broderick on 9/25/2024) (sgz)

As of September 2023
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK
NICOLE BLAKER,
Plaintiff(s),
vs.
EMIL CAPITAL PARTNERS, AGENCY 7SEAS, INC.,
AND ROBERT WILLEY,
Defendant(s).

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23-cv-10543
STIPULATION AND
PROTECTIVE ORDER

WHEREAS, the parties to this action (collectively, the “Parties,” and individually, a
“Party”) request that this Court issue a protective order pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil
Procedure 26(c) to protect the confidentiality of certain nonpublic and confidential material that
they may need to disclose in connection with discovery in this case; and
WHEREAS, the Parties, through counsel, agree to the following terms; and
WHEREAS, the Court finds that good cause exists for issuance of an appropriately tailored
confidentiality order governing the pretrial phase of this action,
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that any person subject to this Stipulation and Protective Order
(“Protective Order”)—including without limitation the Parties to this action, their representatives,
agents, experts and consultants, all third parties providing discovery in this action, and all other
interested persons with actual or constructive notice of this Protective Order—shall adhere to the
following terms:
1.
Any person subject to this Protective Order who receives from any other
person subject to this Protective Order any “Discovery Material” (i.e., information of any
kind produced or disclosed pursuant to and in course of discovery in this action) that is
designated as “Confidential” pursuant to the terms of this Protective Order (hereinafter
“Confidential Discovery Material”) shall not disclose such Confidential Discovery
Material to anyone else except as expressly permitted hereunder.
2.
The person producing any given Discovery Material or that person’s
counsel may designate such material as Confidential, in whole or in part, only if counsel
determines reasonably and in good faith that such designation is necessary to protect the
interests of the client in information that is proprietary, a trade secret, or otherwise sensitive
and non-public financial or business information; that is of a personal or intimate nature
regarding any individual; or that is subject to a contractual or other duty of confidentiality
owed by the client to a third party.

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As of September 2023
3.
With respect to the Confidential portion of any Discovery Material other
than deposition transcripts and exhibits, the producing person or that person’s counsel may
designate such portion as “Confidential” by stamping or otherwise clearly marking as
“Confidential” the protected portion in a manner that will not interfere with legibility or
audibility.
4.
With respect to deposition transcripts and exhibits, a producing person or
that person’s counsel may designate such portion as Confidential either by (a) indicating
on the record during the deposition that a question calls for Confidential information, in
which case the reporter will bind the transcript of the designated testimony (consisting of
question and answer) in a separate volume and mark it as “Confidential Information
Governed by Protective Order”; or (b) notifying the reporter and all counsel of record, in
writing, within 30 days after a deposition has concluded, of the specific pages and lines of
the transcript and/or the specific exhibits that are to be designated Confidential, in which
case all counsel receiving the transcript will be responsible for marking the copies of the
designated transcript or exhibit (as the case may be) in their possession or under their
control as directed by the producing person or that person’s counsel by the reporter. During
the 30-day period following the conclusion of a deposition, the entire deposition transcript
will be treated as if it had been designated Confidential.
5.
If at any time prior to the trial of this action, a producing person realizes that
some portion(s) of Discovery Material that it previously had produced without limitation
should be designated as Confidential, such producing person may so designate such
material by so apprising all prior recipients in writing, and thereafter such designated
portion(s) of the Discovery Material will be deemed to be and treated as Confidential under
the terms of this Protective Order.
6.
No person subject to this Protective Order other than the producing person
shall disclose any of the Discovery Material designated by the producing person as
Confidential to any other person whomsoever, except to:
(a)

the Parties to this action, their insurers, and counsel to their insurers;

(b)
counsel for the Parties, including in-house counsel, and any
paralegal, clerical and other assistant employed by such counsel and assigned to
this matter;
(c)
outside vendors or service providers (such as copy-service providers
and document-management consultants, graphic production services or other
litigation support services) that counsel hire and assign to this matter, including
computer service personnel performing duties in relation to a computerized
litigation system;
(d)
any mediator or arbitrator engaged by the Parties or appointed by
the Court in this matter, provided such person has first executed a Non-Disclosure
Agreement in the form annexed as an Exhibit hereto;
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As of September 2023
(e)
as to any document, its author, its addressee and any other person
indicated on the face of the document as having received a copy;
(f)
any witness who counsel for a Party in good faith believes may be
called to testify at trial or deposition in this action, provided such person has first
executed a Non-Disclosure Agreement in the form annexed as an Exhibit hereto;
(g)
any person retained by a Party as a consultant or expert to assist in
the prosecution or defense of this action, to the extent deemed necessary by counsel,
provided such person has first executed a Non-Disclosure Agreement in the form
annexed as an Exhibit hereto;
(h)
action; and

stenographers engaged to transcribe depositions conducted in this

(i)
this Court, including any appellate court, and the court reporters and
support personnel for the same.
7.
Any Party who objects to any designation of confidentiality may at any time
prior to the trial of this action serve upon counsel for the designating person a written notice
stating with particularity the grounds of the objection. If the Parties cannot reach agreement
promptly, counsel for the Parties will address their dispute to this Court in accordance with
this Court’s Individual Practices in Civil Cases.
8.
Any Party who requests additional limits on disclosure (such as “attorneys’
eyes only” in extraordinary circumstances) may at any time prior to the trial of this action
serve upon counsel for the receiving Party a written notice stating with particularity the
grounds for the request. If the Parties cannot reach agreement promptly, counsel for the
Parties will address their dispute to this Court in accordance with this Court’s Individual
Practices in Civil Cases.
9.
Recipients of Confidential Discovery Material under this Protective Order
may use such material solely for the prosecution and defense of this action, and specifically
(and by way of example and not limitation) may not use Confidential Discovery Material
for any business, commercial or competitive purpose. Nothing contained in this Protective
Order, however, will affect or restrict the rights of any person with respect to its own
documents or information produced in this action. Nor does anything contained in this
Protective Order limit or restrict the rights of any person to use or disclose information or
material obtained independently from and not through or pursuant to discovery in this
action.
10.
Nothing in this Protective Order will prevent any person subject to it from
producing any Confidential Discovery Material in its possession in response to a lawful
subpoena or other compulsory process, or if required to produce by law or by any
government agency having jurisdiction; provided, however, that such person receiving
such a request will (unless prohibited by law from doing so) provide written notice to the
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As of September 2023
producing person before disclosure and as soon as reasonably possible, and, if permitted
by the time allowed under the request, at least 10 days before any disclosure. This notice
is intended to enable the producing person to seek to oppose compliance with the subpoena,
other compulsory process, or other legal notice if the producing person deems it appropriate
to do so.
11.
All persons seeking to file redacted documents or documents under seal
with the Court in connection with non-dispositive matters, or in cases where the Parties
have consented to the jurisdiction of this Court for all purposes, shall follow this Court’s
Individual Practices in Civil Cases as well as the applicable provisions of the Federal Rules
of Civil Procedure and rules and standing orders of the U.S. District Court for the Southern
District of New York. The Parties shall use their best efforts to minimize such sealing.
12.
All persons are hereby placed on notice that the Court is unlikely to seal or
otherwise afford confidential treatment to any Discovery Material introduced in evidence
at trial or supporting or refuting any motion for summary judgment, even if such material
has previously been sealed or designated as Confidential.
13.
Any Party filing a motion or any other papers with the Court under seal shall
also publicly file a redacted copy of the same, via the Court’s Electronic Case Filing
(“ECF”) system, that redacts only the Confidential Discovery Material itself, and not text
that in no material way reveals the Confidential Discovery Material.
14.
Each person who has access to Discovery Material that has been designated
as Confidential shall take all due precautions to prevent the unauthorized or inadvertent
disclosure of such material.
15.
Any Personally Identifying Information (“PII”) (e.g., social security
numbers, financial account numbers, passwords, and information that may be used for
identity theft) exchanged in discovery shall be maintained by the persons who receive such
information and are bound by this Protective Order in a manner that is secure and
confidential. In the event that the person receiving PII experiences a data breach, she, he
or it immediately shall notify the producing person of the same and cooperate with the
producing person to address and remedy the breach. Nothing herein shall preclude the
producing person from asserting legal claims or constitute a waiver of legal rights or
defenses in the event of litigation arising out of the receiving person’s failure to
appropriately protect PII from unauthorized disclosure.
16.
This Protective Order shall survive the termination of the litigation. Within
30 days of the final disposition of this action, all Discovery Material designated as
“Confidential,” and all copies thereof, shall be promptly returned to the producing person,
or, upon permission of the producing person, destroyed.
17.
All persons subject to this Protective Order acknowledge that willful
violation of this Protective Order could subject them to punishment for contempt of Court.
This Court shall retain jurisdiction over all persons subject to this Protective Order to the
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As of September 2023
extent necessary to enforce any obligations arising hereunder or to impose sanctions for
any contempt thereof.
SO STIPULATED AND AGREED:
/s/ Mia D’Andrea
One of the Attorneys for Defendants
CHAPMAN AND CUTLER LLP
Joseph P. Lombardo (NY Bar No. 5447743)
David T.B. Audley (admitted pro hac vice)
Mia D’Andrea (admitted pro hac vice)
Bryan E. Jacobson
320 South Canal Street
Chicago, Illinois 60606
[phone]
[e-mail]
[e-mail]
[e-mail]
[e-mail]
ATTORNEYS FOR DEFENDANTS

/s/ Scott Simpson
Scott Simpson
MENKEN SIMPSON & ROZGER LLP
Scott Simpson
Raya Saksouk
80 Pine Street, 33rd Floor
New York, New York 10005
Office: [phone]
Direct: [phone]
[e-mail]
[e-mail]
ATTORNEYS FOR PLAINTIFF
SO ORDERED:
___________________________________
HON. VERNON S. BRODERICK
United States District Judge
Dated: September 25, 2024
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As of September 2023
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK
NICOLE BLAKER,
Plaintiff(s),
vs.
EMIL CAPITAL PARTNERS, AGENCY 7SEAS, INC.,
AND ROBERT WILLEY,
Defendant(s).

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23-cv-10543
STIPULATION AND
PROTECTIVE ORDER

I, _____________________________, acknowledge that I have read and understand the
Stipulation and Protective Order (the “Protective Order”) in this action governing the
non-disclosure of those portions of Discovery Material that have been designated as Confidential.
I agree that I will not disclose such Confidential Discovery Material to any other person; that I will
not use such Confidential Discovery Material other than for purposes of this litigation; and that at
the conclusion of the litigation I will either return all discovery information to the party or attorney
from whom I received it, or, upon permission of the producing party, destroy such discovery
information. By acknowledging these obligations under the Protective Order, I understand that I
am submitting myself to the jurisdiction of the United States District Court for the Southern
District of New York for the purpose of any issue or dispute arising hereunder and that my willful
violation of any term of the Protective Order could subject me to punishment for contempt of
Court.
Dated: ____________________

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