distinguishing “good cause” 8 showing for sealing documents produced in discovery from “compelling reasons” 9 standard when merits-related documents are part of court record
How later courts described this case
- distinguishing “good cause” 8 showing for sealing documents produced in discovery from “compelling reasons” 9 standard when merits-related documents are part of court record
Written by the judges who cited it.
The opinion
1 Justin A. Palmer (SBN. 270857)
FILER | PALMER, LLP
2 249 E. Ocean Blvd., Suite 101
Long Beach, CA 90802
3
Telephone: (562) 304-5200
4 Facsimile: (562) 394-0104
Email: justin@filerpalmer.com
5
Counsel for Plaintiff,
6
POINSETTA MARK, individually and as
7 successor in interest to SAMUEL MARK
8
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
9 CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
10
POINSETTA MARK, individually and Case No. 2:24-cv-01995-AH (KESx)
11 as successor in interest to SAMUEL
MARK,
12
STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER
13 Plaintiff,
14 vs.
15 COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES;
16 and Does 1-10, inclusive,
17 Defendants.
18 1. A. PURPOSES AND LIMITATIONS
19 Discovery in this action is likely to involve production of confidential,
20 proprietary, or private information for which special protection from public disclosure
21 and from use for any purpose other than prosecuting this litigation may be warranted.
22 Accordingly, the parties hereby stipulate to and petition the Court to enter the
23 following Stipulated Protective Order. The parties acknowledge that this Order does
24 not confer blanket protections on all disclosures or responses to discovery and that
25 the protection it affords from public disclosure and use extends only to the limited
26 information or items that are entitled to confidential treatment under the applicable
27
1 legal principles. The parties further acknowledge, as set forth in Section 12.3, below,
2 that this Stipulated Protective Order does not entitle them to
3
4 B. GOOD CAUSE STATEMENT
5 This action involves the County of Los Angeles and employees at the Los
6 Angeles County Men’s Central Jail. Plaintiff is seeking materials and information that
7 Defendants, the County of Los Angeles (“County”) maintains as confidential, such as
8 personnel files of the Officers involved in this incident, Internal Affairs materials and
9 information, video recordings, Executive Death Review Committee materials and
10 information and other administrative materials and information currently in the
11 possession of the County and which the County believes need special protection from
12 public disclosure and from use for any purpose other than prosecuting this litigation.
13 Plaintiff is also seeking official information contained in the personnel files of the
14 officers involved in the subject incident, which the County maintains as strictly
15 confidential and which the County believes need special protection from public
16 disclosure and from use for any purpose other than prosecuting this litigation .
17 Accordingly, to expedite the flow of information, to facilitate the prompt
18 resolution of disputes over confidentiality of discovery materials, to adequately
19 protect information the parties are entitled to keep confidential, to ensure that the
20 parties are permitted reasonable necessary uses of such material in preparation for and
21 in the conduct of trial, to address their handling at the end of the litigation, and serve
22 the ends of justice, a protective order for such information is justified in this matter.
23 It is the intent of the parties that information will not be designated as confidential for
24 tactical reasons and that nothing be so designated without a good faith belief that it
25 has been maintained in a confidential, non-public manner, and there is good cause
26 why it should not be part of the public record of this case.
27
1 2. DEFINITIONS
2 2.1 Action: this pending federal lawsuit and other related actions.
3 2.2 Challenging Party: a Party or Non-Party that challenges the designation
4 of information or items under this Order.
5 2.3 “CONFIDENTIAL” Information or Items: information (regardless of
6 how it is generated, stored or maintained) or tangible things that qualify for protection
7 under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(c), and as specified above in the Good
8 Cause Statement.
9 2.4 Counsel: Outside Counsel of Record and House Counsel (as well as their
10 support staff).
11 2.5 Designating Party: a Party or Non-Party that designates information or
12 items that it produces in disclosures or in responses to discovery as
13 “CONFIDENTIAL.”
14 2.6 Disclosure or Discovery Material: all items or information, regardless
15 of the medium or manner in which it is generated, stored, or maintained (including,
16 among other things, testimony, transcripts, and tangible things), that are produced or
17 generated in disclosures or responses to discovery in this matter.
18 2.7 Expert: a person with specialized knowledge or experience in a matter
19 pertinent to the litigation who has been retained by a Party or its counsel to serve as
20 an expert witness or as a consultant in this Action.
21 2.8 House Counsel: Attorneys who are employees of a party to this Action.
22 House Counsel does not include Outside Counsel of Record or any other outside
23 counsel.
24 2.9 Non-Party: any natural person, partnership, corporation, association, or
25 other legal entity not named as a Party to this action.
26
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1 2.10 Outside Counsel of Record: attorneys who are not employees of a party
2 to this Action but are retained to represent or advise a party to this Action and have
3 appeared in this Action on behalf of that party or are affiliated with a law firm which
4 has appeared on behalf of that party, and includes support staff.
5 2.11 Party: any party to this Action, including all of its officers, directors,
6 employees, consultants, retained experts, and Outside Counsel of Record (and their
7 support staffs).
8 2.12 Producing Party: a Party or Non-Party that produces Disclosure or
9 Discovery Material in this Action.
10 2.13 Professional Vendors: persons or entities that provide litigation support
11 services (e.g., photocopying, videotaping, translating, preparing exhibits or
12 demonstrations, and organizing, storing, or retrieving data in any form or medium)
13 and their employees and subcontractors.
14 2.14 Protected Material: any Disclosure or Discovery Material that is
15 designated as “CONFIDENTIAL.”
16 2.15 Receiving Party: a Party that receives Disclosure or Discovery Material
17 from a Producing Party.
18 3. SCOPE
19 The protections conferred by this Stipulation and Order cover not only
20 Protected Material (as defined above), but also (1) any information copied or extracted
21 from Protected Material; (2) all copies, excerpts, summaries, or compilations of
22 Protected Material; and (3) any testimony, conversations, or presentations by Parties
23 or their Counsel that might reveal Protected Material.
24 Any use of Protected Material at trial shall be governed by the orders of the
25 trial judge. This Order does not govern the use of Protected Material at trial.
26 …
27
1 4. DURATION
2 Once a case proceeds to trial, all the information that was designated as
3 confidential or maintained pursuant to this protective order becomes public and will
4 be presumptively available to all members of the public, including the press, unless
5 compelling reasons supported by specific factual findings to proceed otherwise are
6 made to the trial judge in advance of the trial. See Kamakana v. City and County of
7 Honolulu, 447 F.3d 1172, 1180-81 (9th Cir. 2006) (distinguishing “good cause”
8 showing for sealing documents produced in discovery from “compelling reasons”
9 standard when merits-related documents are part of court record). Accordingly, the
10 terms of this protective order do not extend beyond the commencement of the trial.
11 5. DESIGNATING PROTECTED MATERIAL
12 5.1 Exercise of Restraint and Care in Designating Material for Protection.
13 Each Party or Non-Party that designates information or items for protection under this
14 Order must take care to limit any such designation to specific material that qualifies
15 under the appropriate standards. The Designating Party must designate for protection
16 only those parts of material, documents, items, or oral or written communications that
17 qualify so that other portions of the material, documents, items, or communications
18 for which protection is not warranted are not swept unjustifiably within the ambit of
19 this Order.
20 Mass, indiscriminate, or routinized designations are prohibited. Designations
21 that are shown to be clearly unjustified or that have been made for an improper
22 purpose (e.g., to unnecessarily encumber the case development process or to impose
23 unnecessary expenses and burdens on other parties) may expose the Designating Party
24 to sanctions.
25
26
27
1 If it comes to a Designating Party’s attention that information or items that it
2 designated for protection do not qualify for protection, that Designating Party must
3 promptly notify all other Parties that it is withdrawing the inapplicable designation.
4 5.2 Manner and Timing of Designations. Except as otherwise provided in this
5 Order (see, e.g., second paragraph of section 5.2(a) below), or as otherwise stipulated
6 or ordered, Disclosure or Discovery Material that qualifies for protection under this
7 Order must be clearly so designated before the material is disclosed or produced.
8 Designation in conformity with this Order requires:
9 (a) for information in documentary form (e.g., paper or electronic documents,
10 but excluding transcripts of depositions or other pretrial or trial proceedings), that the
11 Producing Party affix at a minimum, the legend “CONFIDENTIAL” (hereinafter
12 “CONFIDENTIAL legend”), to each page that contains protected material. If only a
13 portion or portions of the material on a page qualifies for protection, the Producing
14 Party also must clearly identify the protected portion(s) (e.g., by making appropriate
15 markings in the margins).
16 A Party or Non-Party that makes original documents available for inspection
17 need not designate them for protection until after the inspecting Party has indicated
18 which documents it would like copied and produced. During the inspection and before
19 the designation, all of the material made available for inspection shall be deemed
20 “CONFIDENTIAL.” After the inspecting Party has identified the documents it wants
21 copied and produced, the Producing Party must determine which documents, or
22 portions thereof, qualify for protection under this Order. Then, before producing the
23 specified documents, the Producing Party must affix the “CONFIDENTIAL legend”
24 to each page that contains Protected Material. If only a portion or portions of the
25 material on a page qualifies for protection, the Producing Party also must clearly
26
27
1 identify the protected portion(s) (e.g., by making appropriate markings in the
2 margins).
3 (b) for testimony given in depositions that the Designating Party identify the
4 Disclosure or Discovery Material on the record, before the close of the deposition all
5 protected testimony.
6 (c) for information produced in some form other than documentary and for any
7 other tangible items, that the Producing Party affix in a prominent place on the exterior
8 of the container or containers in which the information is stored the legend
9 “CONFIDENTIAL.” If only a portion or portions of the information warrants
10 protection, the Producing Party, to the extent practicable, shall identify the protected
11 portion(s).
12 5.3 Inadvertent Failures to Designate. If timely corrected, an inadvertent
13 failure to designate qualified information or items does not, standing alone, waive the
14 Designating Party’s right to secure protection under this Order for such material.
15 Upon timely correction of a designation, the Receiving Party must make reasonable
16 efforts to assure that the material is treated in accordance with the provisions of this
17 Order.
18 6. CHALLENGING CONFIDENTIALITY DESIGNATION
19 6.1 Timing of Challenges. Any Party or Non-Party may challenge a
20 designation of confidentiality at any time that is consistent with the Court’s
21 Scheduling Order.
22 6.2 Meet and Confer. The Challenging Party shall initiate the dispute
23 resolution process under Local Rule 37.1 et seq. or follow the procedures for informal,
24 telephonic discovery hearings on the Court's website.
25 6.3 The burden of persuasion in any such challenge proceeding shall be on the
26 Designating Party. Frivolous challenges, and those made for an improper purpose
27
1 (e.g., to harass or impose unnecessary expenses and burdens on other parties) may
2 expose the Challenging Party to sanctions. Unless the Designating Party has waived
3 or withdrawn the confidentiality designation, all parties shall continue to afford the
4 material in question the level of protection to which it is entitled under the Producing
5 Party’s designation until the Court rules on the challenge.
6 7. ACCESS TO AND USE OF PROTECTED MATERIAL
7 7.1 Basic Principles. A Receiving Party may use Protected Material that is
8 disclosed or produced by another Party or by a Non-Party in connection with this
9 Action only for prosecuting, defending, or attempting to settle this Action. Such
10 Protected Material may be disclosed only to the categories of persons and under the
11 conditions described in this Order. When the Action has been terminated, a Receiving
12 Party must comply with the provisions of section 13 below (FINAL DISPOSITION).
13 Protected Material must be stored and maintained by a Receiving Party at a
14 location and in a secure manner that ensures that access is limited to the persons
15 authorized under this Order.
16 7.2 Disclosure of “CONFIDENTIAL” Information or Items. Unless
17 otherwise ordered by the court or permitted in writing by the Designating Party, a
18 Receiving Party may disclose any information or item designated
19 “CONFIDENTIAL” only to:
20 (a) the Receiving Party’s Outside Counsel of Record in this Action, as well as
21 employees of said Outside Counsel of Record to whom it is reasonably necessary to
22 disclose the information for this Action;
23 (b) the officers, directors, and employees (including House Counsel) of the
24 Receiving Party to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary for this Action;
25
26
27
1 (c) Experts (as defined in this Order) of the Receiving Party to whom disclosure
2 is reasonably necessary for this Action and who have signed the “Acknowledgment
3 and Agreement to Be Bound” (Exhibit A);
4 (d) the court and its personnel;
5 (e) court reporters and their staff;
6 (f) professional jury or trial consultants, mock jurors, and Professional Vendors
7 to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary for this Action and who have signed the
8 “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound” (Exhibit A);
9 (g) the author or recipient of a document containing the information or a
10 custodian or other person who otherwise possessed or knew the information;
11 (h) during their depositions, witnesses ,and attorneys for witnesses, in the
12 Action to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary provided: (1) the deposing party
13 requests that the witness sign the form attached as Exhibit 1 hereto; and (2) they will
14 not be permitted to keep any confidential information unless they sign the
15 “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound” (Exhibit A), unless otherwise
16 agreed by the Designating Party or ordered by the court. Pages of transcribed
17 deposition testimony or exhibits to depositions that reveal Protected Material may be
18 separately bound by the court reporter and may not be disclosed to anyone except as
19 permitted under this Stipulated Protective Order; and
20 (i) any mediator or settlement officer, and their supporting personnel, mutually
21 agreed upon by any of the parties engaged in settlement discussions.
22 7.3 Counsel making the disclosure to any qualified person described herein
23 shall retain the original executed copy of the Nondisclosure Agreement until sixty
24 (60) days after this litigation has become final, including any appellate review, and
25 monitoring of an injunction. Counsel for the Receiving Party shall maintain all signed
26
27
1 Nondisclosure Agreements and shall produce the original signature page upon
2 reasonable written notice from opposing counsel. If an issue arises regarding a
3 purported unauthorized disclosure of Confidential Information, upon noticed motion
4 of contempt filed by the Designating Party, counsel for the Receiving Party may be
5 required to file the signed Nondisclosure Agreements, as well as a list of the disclosed
6 materials, in camera with the Court having jurisdiction of the Stipulation.
7 8. PROTECTED MATERIAL SUBPOENAED OR ORDERED
8 PRODUCED IN OTHER LITIGATION
9 If a Party is served with a subpoena or a court order issued in other litigation
10 that compels disclosure of any information or items designated in this Action as
11 “CONFIDENTIAL,” that Party must:
12 (a) promptly notify in writing the Designating Party. Such notification shall
13 include a copy of the subpoena or court order;
14 (b) promptly notify in writing the party who caused the subpoena or order to
15 issue in the other litigation that some or all of the material covered by the subpoena
16 or order is subject to this Protective Order. Such notification shall include a copy of
17 this Stipulated Protective Order; and
18 (c) cooperate with respect to all reasonable procedures sought to be pursued by
19 the Designating Party whose Protected Material may be affected.
20 If the Designating Party timely seeks a protective order, the Party served with
21 the subpoena or court order shall not produce any information designated in this action
22 as “CONFIDENTIAL” before a determination by the court from which the subpoena
23 or order issued, unless the Party has obtained the Designating Party’s permission. The
24 Designating Party shall bear the burden and expense of seeking protection in that court
25 of its confidential material and nothing in these provisions should be construed as
26
27
1 authorizing or encouraging a Receiving Party in this Action to disobey a lawful
2 directive from another court.
3 9. A NON-PARTY’S PROTECTED MATERIAL SOUGHT TO
4 BEPRODUCED IN THIS LITIGATION
5 (a) The terms of this Order are applicable to information produced by a Non-
6 Party in this Action and designated as “CONFIDENTIAL.” Such information
7 produced by Non-Parties in connection with this litigation is protected by the
8 remedies and relief provided by this Order. Nothing in these provisions should be
9 construed as prohibiting a Non-Party from seeking additional protections.
10 (b) In the event that a Party is required, by a valid discovery request, to produce
11 a Non-Party’s confidential information in its possession, and the Party is subject to an
12 agreement with the Non-Party not to produce the Non-Party’s confidential
13 information, then the Party shall:
14 (1) promptly notify in writing the Requesting Party and the Non-Party
15 that some or all of the information requested is subject to a confidentiality agreement
16 with a Non-Party;
17 (2) promptly provide the Non-Party with a copy of the Stipulated
18 Protective Order in this Action, the relevant discovery request(s), and a reasonably
19 specific description of the information requested; and
20 (3) make the information requested available for inspection by the Non-
21 Party, if requested.
22 (c) If the Non-Party fails to seek a protective order from this court within 14
23 days of receiving the notice and accompanying information, the Receiving Party may
24 produce the Non-Party’s confidential information responsive to the discovery request.
25 If the Non-Party timely seeks a protective order, the Receiving Party shall not produce
26 any information in its possession or control that is subject to the confidentiality
27
1 agreement with the Non-Party before a determination by the court. Absent a court
2 order to the contrary, the Non-Party shall bear the burden and expense of seeking
3 protection in this court of its Protected Material.
4 10. UNAUTHORIZED DISCLOSURE OF PROTECTED MATERIAL
5 If a Receiving Party learns that, by inadvertence or otherwise, it has disclosed
6 Protected Material to any person or in any circumstance not authorized under this
7 Stipulated Protective Order, the Receiving Party must immediately (a) notify in
8 writing the Designating Party of the unauthorized disclosures, (b) use its best efforts
9 to retrieve all unauthorized copies of the Protected Material, (c) inform the person or
10 persons to whom unauthorized disclosures were made of all the terms of this Order,
11 and (d) request such person or persons to execute the “Acknowledgment and
12 Agreement to Be Bound” that is attached hereto as “Exhibit A”.
13 11. INADVERTENT PRODUCTION OF PRIVILEGED OR OTHERWISE
14 PROTECTED MATERIAL
15 When a Producing Party gives notice to Receiving Parties that certain
16 inadvertently produced material is subject to a claim of privilege or other protection,
17 the obligations of the Receiving Parties are those set forth in Federal Rule of Civil
18 Procedure 26(b)(5)(B). This provision is not intended to modify whatever procedure
19 may be established in an e-discovery order that provides for production without prior
20 privilege review. Pursuant to Federal Rule of Evidence 502(d) and (e), insofar as the
21 parties reach an agreement on the effect of disclosure of a communication or
22 information covered by the attorney-client privilege or work product protection, the
23 parties may incorporate their agreement in the stipulated protective order submitted
24 to the court.
25 …
26 …
27
1 12. MISCELLANEOUS
2 12.1 Right to Further Relief. Nothing in this Order abridges the right of any
3 person to seek its modification by the Court in the future.
4 12.2 Right to Assert Other Objections. By stipulating to the entry of this
5 Protective Order no Party waives any right it otherwise would have to object to
6 disclosing or producing any information or item on any ground not addressed in this
7 Stipulated Protective Order. Similarly, no Party waives any right to object on any
8 ground to use in evidence of any of the material covered by this Protective Order.
9 12.3 Filing Protected Material. A Party that seeks to file under seal any
10 Protected Material must comply with Civil Local Rule 79-5. Protected Material may
11 only be filed under seal pursuant to a court order authorizing the sealing of the specific
12 Protected Material at issue. If a Party's request to file Protected Material under seal is
13 denied by the court, then the Receiving Party may file the information in the public
14 record unless otherwise instructed by the court.
15 13. FINAL DISPOSITION
16 After the final disposition of this Action, as defined in paragraph 4, within 60
17 days of a written request by the Designating Party, each Receiving Party must return
18 all Protected Material to the Producing Party or destroy such material. As used in this
19 subdivision, “all Protected Material” includes all copies, abstracts, compilations,
20 summaries, and any other format reproducing or capturing any of the Protected
21 Material. Whether the Protected Material is returned or destroyed, the Receiving Party
22 must submit a written certification to the Producing Party (and, if not the same person
23 or entity, to the Designating Party) by the 60 day deadline that (1) identifies (by
24 category, where appropriate) all the Protected Material that was returned or destroyed
25 and (2)affirms that the Receiving Party has not retained any copies, abstracts,
26 compilations, summaries or any other format reproducing or capturing any of the
27
1 Protected Material. Notwithstanding this provision, Counsel are entitled to retain an
2 archival copy of all pleadings, motion papers, trial, deposition, and hearing
3 transcripts, legal memoranda, correspondence, deposition and trial exhibits, expert
4 reports, attorney work product, and consultant and expert work product, even if such
5 materials contain Protected Material. Any such archival copies that contain or
6 constitute Protected Material remain subject to this Protective Order as set forth in
7 Section 4.
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2 14. VIOLATION
3 Any violation of this Order may be punished by any and all appropriate
measures including, without limitation, contempt proceedings and/or monetary
5|| sanctions.
6|| IT IS SO STIPULATED, THROUGH COUNSEL OF RECORD.
7
8|| DATED May 16, 2025 FILER | PALMER, LLP
9
Justin A. Palmer
_ Attorneys for Plaintiffs, POINSETTA
2 MARK, individually and as successor
13 in interest to SAMUEL MARK
15 DATED May 16, 2025 COLLINS + COLLINS LLP
16
Ke
Tomas A. Guterres
19 Chandler A. Parker
0 Attorneys for Defendant, COUNTY
OF LOS ANGELES
21
22 FOR GOOD CAUSE SHOWN, IT IS SO ORDERED.
23
24
DATED: May 19, 2025 ions & Scot
26 [HON. KAREN E. SCOTT]
07 Magistrate Judge
2 g [2025.05.14 - Protective Order.docx 15
STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER
1 EXHIBIT A
2 ACKNOWLEDGMENT AND AGREEMENT TO BE BOUND
3 I, _____________________________ [print or type full name], of
4 _________________ [print or type full address], declare under penalty of perjury that
5 I have read in its entirety and understand the Stipulated Protective Order that was
6 issued by the United States District Court for the Central District of California on
7 [date] in the case of ___________ [insert formal name of the case and the number and
8 initials assigned to it by the court]. I agree to comply with and to be bound by all the
9 terms of this Stipulated Protective Order and I understand and acknowledge that
10 failure to so comply could expose me to sanctions and punishment in the nature of
11 contempt. I solemnly promise that I will not disclose in any manner any information
12 or item that is subject to this Stipulated Protective Order to any person or entity except
13 in strict compliance with the provisions of this Order.
14 I further agree to submit to the jurisdiction of the United States District Court
15 for the Central District of California for the purpose of enforcing the terms of this
16 Stipulated Protective Order, even if such enforcement proceedings occur after
17 termination of this action. I hereby appoint __________________________ [print or
18 type full name] of _______________________________________ [print or type full
19 address and telephone number] as my California agent for service of process in
20 connection with this action or any proceedings related to enforcement of this
21 Stipulated Protective Order.
22
23 Date: ______________________________________
24 City and State where sworn and signed: _________________________________
25 Printed name: _______________________________
26 Signature: __________________________________
27