Johnson v. Gordon Food Service, Inc.

Filing 10

STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER. Signed by Magistrate Judge Kimberly A. Jolson on 10/4/2017. (ew)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF OHIO
EASTERN DIVISION
BRIAN W. JOHNSON,
Plaintiff,

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Case No. 2:17-cv-00543-JLG-KAJ
Judge James L. Graham
Magistrate Judge Kimberly A. Jolson

v.
GORDON FOOD SERVICE STORE LLC,
Defendant.

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STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER

The Parties to this Stipulated Protective Order, Plaintiff Brian W. Johnson (“Plaintiff”)
and Defendant Gordon Food Service Store LLC (“Defendant”) (collectively, Plaintiff and
Defendant are referred to as the “Parties”), have agreed to the terms of this Order; accordingly, it
is ORDERED:
1.

Scope. All documents produced in the course of discovery, including initial

disclosures, all responses to discovery requests, all deposition testimony and exhibits, and all
other materials (hereinafter collectively “documents”) that contain information that has been
designated as “CONFIDENTIAL,” pursuant to Paragraph 4 of this Order (“Confidential
Information”), or information derived directly therefrom, shall be subject to this Order. This
Order shall also apply to any photocopy, duplicate, computer file or printout, compilation,
synopsis, summary, quotation, digest or notes (or any portion thereof) that includes Confidential
Information. This Order is subject to the Local Rules of this Court and the Federal Rules of
Civil Procedure on matters of procedure and calculation of time periods.

2.

Form of Designation. A party may designate documents as confidential and

restricted in disclosure under this Order by placing or affixing the words “CONFIDENTIAL” on
the document in a manner that will not interfere with the legibility of the document.
3.

Timing of Designation. Documents shall be designated CONFIDENTIAL prior

to or at the time of the production or disclosure of the documents. Failure to

designate

documents as CONFIDENTIAL at or before the time of production shall not preclude the
disclosing individual or entity from thereafter, but no more than fifteen (15) business days after
production, in good faith making such a designation and requesting the receiving party to so
mark and treat such documents or other media so designated from the time of such designation
forward. After such designation, such documents or other media shall be fully subject to this
Order. No individual or entity shall incur liability for disclosures made prior to notice of such
designation.
4.

Documents Which May be Designated CONFIDENTIAL. Any party may

designate documents as CONFIDENTIAL upon making a good faith determination that the
documents contain information protected from disclosure by statute or that should be protected
from disclosure as confidential personal information; medical or psychiatric information; trade
secrets; personnel records; financial information; or such other sensitive commercial information
that is not publicly available. Public records and other information or documents that are
publicly available may not be designated as CONFIDENTIAL.
5.

Depositions. Designated portions of deposition testimony shall be considered

CONFIDENTIAL by a statement on the deposition record or by a written statement furnished to
the opposing counsel of record and the official court reporter within ten (10) business days of
such testimony. Such designation shall be specific as to the portions of the transcript or any

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exhibit to be designated as CONFIDENTIAL. Thereafter, the deposition transcripts and any of
those portions so designated shall be protected as CONFIDENTIAL, pending objection, under
the terms of this Order.
6.

Use and Disclosure of Confidential Material.
(a)

General Protections. Documents designated CONFIDENTIAL under

this Order shall not be used or disclosed by the Parties, counsel for the Parties or any
other persons identified in Paragraph 6(b) for any purpose whatsoever other than to
prepare for and to conduct discovery and trial in this action, including any appeal thereof.
(b)

Limited Third-Party Disclosures. The Parties and counsel for

the

Parties shall not disclose or permit the disclosure of any CONFIDENTIAL documents to
any third person or entity except as set forth in subparagraphs (1)-(6) of this section.
Subject to these requirements, the following categories of persons may be allowed to
review documents that have been designated CONFIDENTIAL:
(i)

Counsel.

Counsel for the Parties and employees and agents of

counsel who have responsibility for the preparation and trial of the action;
(ii)

Parties. Parties and employees of a party to this Order;1

(iii)

Court Reporters and Recorders. Court reporters and recorders

engaged for depositions;

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NOTE: If the CONFIDENTIAL documents contain highly sensitive trade secrets or other
highly sensitive competitive or confidential information and disclosure to another party would
result in demonstrable harm to the disclosing party, then the Parties may stipulate or move for
the establishment of an additional category of protection that prohibits disclosure of such
document or information to category (2) or that limits disclosure only to specifically designated
in-house counsel or party representative(s) whose assistance is reasonably necessary to the
conduct of litigation and who agree to be bound by the terms of the order.

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(iv)

Consultants, Investigators, Lay Witnesses, and Experts.

Consultants, investigators, or experts (hereinafter referred to collectively as
“experts”) employed by the Parties or counsel for the Parties to assist in the
preparation and trial of this action or proceeding or such persons whom counsel
for a Party has identified in writing to opposing counsel in good faith as a
potential witness in this action, but only after such persons have completed the
certification contained in Attachment A, Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be
Bound, a copy of which shall be served upon all parties;
(v)

This Honorable Court, Court personnel and the Clerk of

Courts; and
(vi)

Others by Consent. Other persons only by written consent of the

producing party or upon order of the Court and on such conditions as may be
agreed or ordered. All such persons shall execute the certification contained in
Attachment A, Acknowledgment of Understanding and Agreement to Be Bound,
a copy of which shall be served upon all parties.
(c)

Inadvertent Disclosure. Inadvertent disclosure of any document or

information designated as CONFIDENTIAL shall not be deemed a waiver in whole or in
part of a party’s claim of confidentiality. Upon discovery of the inadvertent or
unintentional disclosure of Confidential Information, counsel for the Parties shall
cooperate to restore the confidentiality of the information.
7.

Filing of CONFIDENTIAL Documents Under Seal. To the extent that a brief,

memorandum, pleading or other document filed with the Court references any document marked
as CONFIDENTIAL, the document shall be filed under seal only for good cause shown. Unless

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otherwise agreed in writing by counsel for the parties, in the event a party wishes to file with the
Court for any purpose any of the discovery provided pursuant to this Protective Order, and/or the
data and information contained therein, and if time permits, the parties, through counsel, will
discuss the confidential information and documents they intend to file in order to determine if a
compromise can be reached in whole or in part to allow for filing not under seal. If the matter is
not resolved as set forth above, the party intending to file any protected confidential document or
information shall first file a motion seeking the Court’s permission to file the document or
information under seal. This Protective Order does not authorize filing protected materials under
seal. According to the authority of Procter & Gamble Co. v. Bankers Trust Co., 78 F.3d 219
(6th Cir. 1996), no document may be filed with the Court under seal without prior permission as
to each such filing, upon motion and for good cause shown, including the legal basis for filing
under seal. Unless the Court orders otherwise, all sealed documents shall be filed according to
Local Rule 5.2.1.
8.

Challenges by a Party to Designation of Documents as CONFIDENTIAL.

Any CONFIDENTIAL designation is subject to challenge by any party. Before filing any
motions or objections to a confidentiality designation with the Court, the objecting party must
meet and confer in a good faith effort to resolve the objection by agreement. If agreement is
reached confirming or waiving the CONFIDENTIAL designation, the designating party shall
serve on all Parties a notice specifying the documents and the nature of the agreement. In the
event the dispute cannot be resolved in this manner, the matter shall be submitted to the Court,
by motion, for a prompt resolution (which may, by agreement of the Parties, be done through an
oral hearing or telephonic conference with the Court). Pending such resolution by the Court, the
information in question shall continue to be treated as CONFIDENTIAL in accordance with the

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provisions of this Order.
9.

Use of Confidential Documents or Information at Trial. If a party intends to

present at trial CONFIDENTIAL documents or information derived therefrom, such party shall
provide advance notice to the other party at least five (5) days before the commencement of trial
by identifying the documents or information at issue as specifically as possible (i.e., by Bates
number, page range, deposition transcript lines, etc.) without divulging the actual
CONFIDENTIAL documents or information. The Court may thereafter make such orders as are
necessary to govern the use of such documents or information at trial.
10.

Obligations on Conclusion of Litigation.
(a)

Order Remains in Effect. Unless otherwise agreed or ordered, this Order

shall remain in force after dismissal or entry of a final judgment that is not subject to
further appeal. All persons receiving documents designated as CONFIDENTIAL
pursuant to this Order shall continue at all times hereafter to treat such information in
strict accordance with this Order. All persons or entities to whom/which documents
designated as CONFIDENTIAL are disclosed agree to the jurisdiction of this Court for
the purpose of proceedings relating to the performance under, compliance with, or
violation of this Order.
(b)

Return of CONFIDENTIAL Documents. After dismissal or the entry of

a final judgment that is not subject to further appeal and upon request of the producing
party, all documents designated as CONFIDENTIAL under this Order, including any
copies thereof, shall be returned to the producing party unless: (1) the document has been
offered into evidence or filed without restriction as to disclosure; (2) the Parties agree to
destruction in lieu of return, with certification to the producing party that the documents

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have been destroyed; or (3) as to documents bearing the notations, summations, or other
mental impressions of the receiving party, that party elects to destroy the documents in
lieu of return and certifies to the producing party that it has done so.
(c)

Return of Documents Filed under Seal. After dismissal or entry of a

final judgment that is not subject to further appeal, the Clerk may elect to return to
counsel for the Parties or, after notice, destroy documents filed or offered at trial under
seal or otherwise restricted by the Court as to disclosure.
11.

Order Subject to Modification. This Order shall be subject to modification by

the Court on its own motion or on motion of a party. Motions to modify this Order shall be
served and filed in accordance with this Court’s Local Rules and the Federal Rules of Civil
Procedure.
12.

No Prior Judicial Determination. This Order is entered based on the

representations and agreements of the Parties and for the purpose of facilitating discovery.
Nothing herein shall be construed or presented as a judicial determination that any documents or
information designated CONFIDENTIAL by counsel or the Parties is subject to protection under
Rule 26(c) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, or otherwise, until such time as the Court
may rule on a specific document or issue.
13.

Persons Bound. This Order shall take effect when entered and shall be binding

upon all counsel and their law firms, the Parties, and persons made subject to this Order by its
terms.
IT IS SO ORDERED.

Date: October 4, 2017

/s/ Kimberly A. Jolson
KIMBERLY A. JOLSON
UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

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Respectfully submitted,

/s/ Rebecca J. Bennett
Rebecca J. Bennett (0069566)
Andrew S. Haring (0087213)
Ogletree, Deakins, Nash,
Smoak & Stewart, P.C.
127 Public Square
4100 Key Tower
Cleveland, OH 44114
216.274.6903 - Telephone
216.357.4733 – Facsimile
[e-mail]
[e-mail]

/s/ John S. Marshall (per email consent)
John S. Marshall (0015160)
Edward R. Forman (0076651)
Samuel M. Schlein (0092194)
Marshall and Forman LLC
250 Civic Center Drive, Suite 480
Columbus, OH 43215-5296
614.463.9790 – Telephone
614.463.9780 – Facsimile
[e-mail]
[e-mail]
[e-mail]

Attorneys for Defendant

Attorneys for Plaintiff

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I hereby certify that on October 3, 2017, a copy of the foregoing was electronically filed
with the Clerk of Court using the CM/ECF system. Notice of this filing will be sent to all
parties by operation of the Court’s electronic filing system. Parties may access this filing
through the Court’s system.
/s/ Rebecca J. Bennett
Attorney for Defendant

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF OHIO
EASTERN DIVISION
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BRIAN W. JOHNSON,
Plaintiff,
v.
GORDON FOOD SERVICE STORE LLC,
Defendant.

Case No. 2:17-cv-00543-JLG-KAJ
The Honorable James L. Graham
ACKNOWLEDGMENT AND
AGREEMENT TO BE BOUND

The undersigned hereby acknowledges that he/she has read the Protective Order dated
in the above-captioned action and attached hereto, understands the
terms thereof, and agrees to be bound by its terms. The undersigned submits to the jurisdiction of the
United States District Court, Northern District of Ohio, in matters relating to the Protective Order and
understands that the terms of the Protective Order obligate him/her to use documents designated
CONFIDENTIAL in accordance with the Order solely for the purposes of the above-captioned action,
and not to disclose any such documents or information derived directly therefrom to any other person,
firm or concern. The undersigned acknowledges that violation of the Protective Order may result in
penalties for contempt of court.
Name:
Job Title:
Employer:
Business Address:

Date

Signature

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