distinguishing “good cause” showing 24 for sealing documents produced in discovery from “compelling reasons” standard when 1 merits-related documents are part of court record
How later courts described this case
- distinguishing “good cause” showing 24 for sealing documents produced in discovery from “compelling reasons” standard when 1 merits-related documents are part of court record
Written by the judges who cited it.
The opinion
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8 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
9 CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
10
Case No. SACV 24-02811-(ADSx)
11 VICTORIA PICHKUROVA
Plaintiff,
12 STIPULATED PROTECTIVE
v. ORDER1
13
14 USCIS LOS ANGELES ASYLUM OFFICE,
et al.
15 Defendant(s).
16
17 I. PURPOSES AND LIMITATIONS
18 A. Discovery in this action is likely to involve production of confidential,
19 proprietary, or private information for which special protection from public
20 disclosure and from use for any purpose other than prosecuting this litigation
21 may be warranted including case-specific, asylum-related, or private
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1 This Stipulated Protective Order is based off the model protective order provided
24
under Magistrate Spaeth’s Requirements and Procedures.
1 information relating to Plaintiff. Accordingly, the parties hereby stipulate to and
2 petition the Court to enter the following Stipulated Protective Order. The parties
3 acknowledge that this Order does not confer blanket protections on all
4 disclosures or responses to discovery and that the protection it affords from
5 public disclosure and use extends only to the limited information or items that
6 are entitled to confidential treatment under the applicable legal principles. The
7 parties further acknowledge, as set forth in Section XIII(C), below, that this
8 Stipulated Protective Order does not entitle them to file confidential information
9 under seal; Civil Local Rule 79-5 sets forth the procedures that must be followed
10 and the standards that will be applied when a party seeks permission from the
11 Court to file material under seal.
12 II. GOOD CAUSE STATEMENT
13 As contemplated by the parties in their Joint Rule 26(f) Report, Dkt. 13,
14 Defendants anticipate the filing of a Certified Administrative Record of the Plaintiff’s
15 asylum application filed with Defendant United States Citizenship and Immigration
16 Services (the “CAR”). The Court has set a July 14, 2025 order to show cause concerning
17 the filing of the CAR. Dkt. 24. The CAR is likely to contain personally identifiable
18 information and information regarding the Plaintiff’s asylum application including
19 information regarding Plaintiff’s prior persecution and fear of future persecution that is
20 protected by law. See 8 C.F.R. § 208.6 (governing the disclosure of information
21 contained in or pertaining to any asylum application). Disclosure of asylum-related
22 information may subject an asylum applicant to retaliatory measures by government
23 authorities or non-state actors in the event that an asylum applicant is repatriated, or
24 endanger the security of the applicant’s family members still residing in the applicant’s
1 country of origin. See USCIS Fact Sheet: Federal Regulation Protecting the
2 Confidentiality of Asylum Applicants, available at
3 https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/document/fact-sheets/Asylum-
4 ConfidentialityFactSheet.pdf (last visited May 22, 2025).
5 Accordingly, to expedite the flow of information, to facilitate the prompt
6 resolution of disputes over confidentiality of discovery materials, to adequately protect
7 information the parties are entitled to keep confidential, to ensure that the parties are
8 permitted reasonable necessary uses of such material in preparation for and in the
9 conduct of trial, to address their handling at the end of the litigation, and serve the
10 ends of justice, a protective order for such information is justified in this matter. It is
11 the intent of the parties that information will not be designated as confidential for
12 tactical reasons and that nothing be so designated without a good faith belief that it has
13 been maintained in a confidential, non-public manner, and there is good cause why it
14 should not be part of the public record of this case.
15 III. DEFINITIONS
16 A. Action: Victoria Pichkurova v. USCIS Los Angeles Asylum Office, et al., SACV
17 24-02811-ADS
18 B. Challenging Party: A Party or Non-Party that challenges the designation of
19 information or items under this Order.
20 C. “CONFIDENTIAL” Information or Items: Information (regardless of how it is
21 generated, stored or maintained) or tangible things that qualify for protection under
22 Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(c), and as specified above in the Good Cause
23 Statement, including the CAR, and
24 (i) Information, documents or tangible things protected by the Privacy Act,
1 5 U.S.C. § 552a, et seq., or information that would be covered by the
2 Privacy Act if the subject of the information had been a U.S. citizen or a
3 person lawfully admitted for permanent residence;
4 (ii) Information, documents or tangible things—which may include, among
5 other things, Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and
6 Customs Enforcement and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
7 records regarding law enforcement activities and operations, internal
8 policies, processes and procedures, and internal investigations—which
9 contain information that is law enforcement sensitive, for instance,
10 information which would be protected from disclosure under FOIA, 5
11 U.S.C. § 552, et seq., under the exemption found at 5 U.S.C. §
12 552(b)(7)(E).
13 (iii) Information contained in or pertaining to: (1) asylum claims or
14 applications including applications for relief under the Convention
15 Against Torture (“CAT”) and refugee information; and
16 (iv) Any identifying information that is not publicly available and qualifies for
17 protection under applicable law, statutes or regulations (including 8
18 C.F.R. 208.6), including, but not limited to: (i) the names, addresses, date
19 of birth, and “A” number of the particular individual(s) to whom
20 information relates and any other personally identifiable information
21 identified in Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 5.2; and (ii) any personally
22 identifiable information related to third parties other than the individual
23 whose information is being sought.
24
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2 D. Counsel: Outside Counsel of Record and House Counsel (as well as their
3 support staff).
4 E. Designating Party: A Party or Non-Party that designates information or items
5 that it produces in disclosures or in responses to discovery as “CONFIDENTIAL.”
6 F. Disclosure or Discovery Material: All items or information, regardless of the
7 medium or manner in which it is generated, stored, or maintained (including, among
8 other things, testimony, transcripts, and tangible things), that are produced or
9 generated in disclosures or responses to discovery in this matter, including the CAR.
10 G. Expert: A person with specialized knowledge or experience in a matter pertinent
11 to the litigation who has been retained by a Party or its counsel to serve as an expert
12 witness or as a consultant in this Action.
13 H. House Counsel: Attorneys who are employees of a party to this Action. House
14 Counsel does not include Outside Counsel of Record or any other outside counsel.
15 I. Non-Party: Any natural person, partnership, corporation, association, or other
16 legal entity not named as a Party to this action.
17 J. Outside Counsel of Record: Attorneys who are not employees of a party to this
18 Action but are retained to represent or advise a party to this Action and have appeared
19 in this Action on behalf of that party or are affiliated with a law firm which has
20 appeared on behalf of that party, and includes support staff.
21 K. Party: Any party to this Action, including all of its officers, directors, employees,
22 consultants, retained experts, and Outside Counsel of Record (and their support staffs).
23 L. Producing Party: A Party or Non-Party that produces Disclosure or Discovery
24 Material in this Action.
1 M. Professional Vendors: Persons or entities that provide litigation support
2 services (e.g., photocopying, videotaping, translating, preparing exhibits or
3 demonstrations, and organizing, storing, or retrieving data in any form or medium)
4 and their employees and subcontractors.
5 N. Protected Material: Any Disclosure or Discovery Material that is designated as
6 “CONFIDENTIAL.”
7 O. Receiving Party: A Party that receives Disclosure or Discovery Material from a
8 Producing Party.
9 IV. SCOPE
10 A. The protections conferred by this Stipulation and Order cover not only Protected
11 Material (as defined above), but also (1) any information copied or extracted from
12 Protected Material; (2) all copies, excerpts, summaries, or compilations of Protected
13 Material; and (3) any testimony, conversations, or presentations by Parties or their
14 Counsel that might reveal Protected Material.
15 B. Any use of Protected Material at trial shall be governed by the orders of the trial
16 judge. This Order does not govern the use of Protected Material at trial.
17 V. DURATION
18 Once a case proceeds to trial, all of the information that was designated as
19 confidential or maintained pursuant to this Protective Order becomes public and will
20 be presumptively available to all members of the public, including the press, unless
21 compelling reasons supported by specific factual findings to proceed otherwise are
22 made to the trial judge in advance of the trial. See Kamakana v. City and County of
23 Honolulu, 447 F.3d 1172, 1180-81 (9th Cir. 2006) (distinguishing “good cause” showing
24 for sealing documents produced in discovery from “compelling reasons” standard when
1 merits-related documents are part of court record). Accordingly, the terms of this
2 Protective Order do not extend beyond the commencement of the trial.
3 Notwithstanding the above, the CAR shall remain subject to the provisions of this
4 protective order indefinitely.
5 VI. DESIGNATING PROTECTED MATERIAL
6 A. Exercise of Restraint and Care in Designating Material for Protection
7 1. Each Party or Non-Party that designates information or items for
8 protection under this Order must take care to limit any such designation
9 to specific material that qualifies under the appropriate standards. The
10 Designating Party must designate for protection only those parts of
11 material, documents, items, or oral or written communications that
12 qualify so that other portions of the material, documents, items, or
13 communications for which protection is not warranted are not swept
14 unjustifiably within the ambit of this Order.
15 2. Mass, indiscriminate, or routinized designations are prohibited.
16 Designations that are shown to be clearly unjustified or that have been
17 made for an improper purpose (e.g., to unnecessarily encumber the case
18 development process or to impose unnecessary expenses and burdens on
19 other parties) may expose the Designating Party to sanctions.
20 3. If it comes to a Designating Party’s attention that information or
21 items that it designated for protection do not qualify for protection, that
22 Designating Party must promptly notify all other Parties that it is
23 withdrawing the inapplicable designation.
24 B. Manner and Timing of Designations
1 1. Except as otherwise provided in this Order (see, e.g., Section
2 B(2)(b) below), or as otherwise stipulated or ordered, Disclosure or
3 Discovery Material that qualifies for protection under this Order must be
4 clearly so designated before the material is disclosed or produced, or in
5 the case of the CAR, designated in conformity with this Order at the time
6 of filing.
7 2. Designation in conformity with this Order requires the following:
8 a. For information in documentary form (e.g., paper or
9 electronic documents, but excluding transcripts of depositions or
10 other pretrial or trial proceedings), that the Producing Party affix
11 at a minimum, the legend “CONFIDENTIAL” (hereinafter
12 “CONFIDENTIAL legend”), to each page that contains protected
13 material. If only a portion or portions of the material on a page
14 qualifies for protection, the Producing Party also must clearly
15 identify the protected portion(s) (e.g., by making appropriate
16 markings in the margins).
17 b. A Party or Non-Party that makes original documents
18 available for inspection need not designate them for protection
19 until after the inspecting Party has indicated which documents it
20 would like copied and produced. During the inspection and before
21 the designation, all of the material made available for inspection
22 shall be deemed “CONFIDENTIAL.” After the inspecting Party has
23 identified the documents it wants copied and produced, the
24 Producing Party must determine which documents, or portions
1 thereof, qualify for protection under this Order. Then, before
2 producing the specified documents, the Producing Party must affix
3 the “CONFIDENTIAL legend” to each page that contains Protected
4 Material. If only a portion or portions of the material on a page
5 qualifies for protection, the Producing Party also must clearly
6 identify the protected portion(s) (e.g., by making appropriate
7 markings in the margins).
8 c. For testimony given in depositions, that the Designating
9 Party identify the Disclosure or Discovery Material on the record,
10 before the close of the deposition all protected testimony.
11 d. For information produced in form other than document and
12 for any other tangible items, that the Producing Party affix in a
13 prominent place on the exterior of the container or containers in
14 which the information is stored the legend “CONFIDENTIAL.” If
15 only a portion or portions of the information warrants protection,
16 the Producing Party, to the extent practicable, shall identify the
17 protected portion(s).
18 C. Inadvertent Failure to Designate
19 1. If timely corrected, an inadvertent failure to designate qualified
20 information or items does not, standing alone, waive the Designating
21 Party’s right to secure protection under this Order for such material.
22 Upon timely correction of a designation, the Receiving Party must make
23 reasonable efforts to assure that the material is treated in accordance with
24 the provisions of this Order.
1 VII. CHALLENGING CONFIDENTIALITY DESIGNATIONS
2 A. Timing of Challenges
3 1. Any party or Non-Party may challenge a designation of
4 confidentiality at any time that is consistent with the Court’s Scheduling
5 Order.
6 B. Meet and Confer
7 1. The Challenging Party shall initiate the dispute resolution process
8 under Local Rule 37.1 et seq.
9 C. The burden of persuasion in any such challenge proceeding shall be on the
10 Designating Party. Frivolous challenges, and those made for an improper purpose
11 (e.g., to harass or impose unnecessary expenses and burdens on other parties) may
12 expose the Challenging Party to sanctions. Unless the Designating Party has waived or
13 withdrawn the confidentiality designation, all parties shall continue to afford the
14 material in question the level of protection to which it is entitled under the Producing
15 Party’s designation until the Court rules on the challenge.
16 VIII. ACCESS TO AND USE OF PROTECTED MATERIAL
17 A. Basic Principles
18 1. A Receiving Party may use Protected Material that is disclosed or
19 produced by another Party or by a Non-Party in connection with this
20 Action only for prosecuting, defending, or attempting to settle this Action.
21 Such Protected Material may be disclosed only to the categories of
22 persons and under the conditions described in this Order. When the
23 Action has been terminated, a Receiving Party must comply with the
24 provisions of Section XIV below.
1 2. Protected Material must be stored and maintained by a Receiving
2 Party at a location and in a secure manner that ensures that access is
3 limited to the persons authorized under this Order.
4 B. Disclosure of “CONFIDENTIAL” Information or Items
5 1. Unless otherwise ordered by the Court or permitted in writing by
6 the Designating Party, a Receiving Party may disclose any information or
7 item designated “CONFIDENTIAL” only to:
8 a. The Receiving Party’s Outside Counsel of Record in this
9 Action, as well as employees of said Outside Counsel of Record to
10 whom it is reasonably necessary to disclose the information for this
11 Action;
12 b. The officers, directors, and employees (including House
13 Counsel) of the Receiving Party to whom disclosure is reasonably
14 necessary for this Action;
15 c. Experts (as defined in this Order) of the Receiving Party to
16 whom disclosure is reasonably necessary for this Action and who
17 have signed the “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound”
18 (Exhibit A);
19 d. The Court and its personnel;
20 e. Court reporters and their staff;
21 f. Professional jury or trial consultants, mock jurors, and
22 Professional Vendors to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary
23 for this Action and who have signed the “Acknowledgment and
24 Agreement to be Bound” attached as Exhibit A hereto;
1 g. The author or recipient of a document containing the
2 information or a custodian or other person who otherwise
3 possessed or knew the information;
4 h. During their depositions, witnesses, and attorneys for
5 witnesses, in the Action to whom disclosure is reasonably
6 necessary provided: (i) the deposing party requests that the
7 witness sign the “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound;”
8 and (ii) they will not be permitted to keep any confidential
9 information unless they sign the “Acknowledgment and Agreement
10 to Be Bound,” unless otherwise agreed by the Designating Party or
11 ordered by the Court. Pages of transcribed deposition testimony or
12 exhibits to depositions that reveal Protected Material may be
13 separately bound by the court reporter and may not be disclosed to
14 anyone except as permitted under this Stipulated Protective Order;
15 and
16 i. Any mediator or settlement officer, and their supporting
17 personnel, mutually agreed upon by any of the parties engaged in
18 settlement discussions.
19 IX. PROTECTED MATERIAL SUBPOENAED OR ORDERED PRODUCED
20 IN OTHER LITIGATION
21 A. If a Party is served with a subpoena or a court order issued in other litigation
22 that compels disclosure of any information or items designated in this Action as
23 “CONFIDENTIAL,” that Party must:
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1 1. Promptly notify in writing the Designating Party. Such notification
2 shall include a copy of the subpoena or court order;
3 2. Promptly notify in writing the party who caused the subpoena or
4 order to issue in the other litigation that some or all of the material
5 covered by the subpoena or order is subject to this Protective Order. Such
6 notification shall include a copy of this Stipulated Protective Order; and
7 3. Cooperate with respect to all reasonable procedures sought to be
8 pursued by the Designating Party whose Protected Material may be
9 affected.
10 B. If the Designating Party timely seeks a protective order, the Party served with
11 the subpoena or court order shall not produce any information designated in this action
12 as “CONFIDENTIAL” before a determination by the Court from which the subpoena or
13 order issued, unless the Party has obtained the Designating Party’s permission. The
14 Designating Party shall bear the burden and expense of seeking protection in that court
15 of its confidential material and nothing in these provisions should be construed as
16 authorizing or encouraging a Receiving Party in this Action to disobey a lawful directive
17 from another court.
18 X. A NON-PARTY’S PROTECTED MATERIAL SOUGHT TO BE
19 PRODUCED IN THIS LITIGATION
20 A. The terms of this Order are applicable to information produced by a Non-Party
21 in this Action and designated as “CONFIDENTIAL.” Such information produced by
22 Non-Parties in connection with this litigation is protected by the remedies and relief
23 provided by this Order. Nothing in these provisions should be construed as prohibiting
24 a Non-Party from seeking additional protections.
1 B. In the event that a Party is required, by a valid discovery request, to produce a
2 Non-Party’s confidential information in its possession, and the Party is subject to an
3 agreement with the Non-Party not to produce the Non-Party’s confidential
4 information, then the Party shall:
5 1. Promptly notify in writing the Requesting Party and the Non-Party
6 that some or all of the information requested is subject to a
7 confidentiality agreement with a Non-Party;
8 2. Promptly provide the Non-Party with a copy of the Stipulated
9 Protective Order in this Action, the relevant discovery request(s), and a
10 reasonably specific description of the information requested; and
11 3. Make the information requested available for inspection by the
12 Non-Party, if requested.
13 C. If the Non-Party fails to seek a protective order from this court within 14 days of
14 receiving the notice and accompanying information, the Receiving Party may produce
15 the Non-Party’s confidential information responsive to the discovery request. If the
16 Non-Party timely seeks a protective order, the Receiving Party shall not produce any
17 information in its possession or control that is subject to the confidentiality agreement
18 with the Non-Party before a determination by the court. Absent a court order to the
19 contrary, the Non-Party shall bear the burden and expense of seeking protection in this
20 court of its Protected Material.
21 XI. UNAUTHORIZED DISCLOSURE OF PROTECTED MATERIAL
22 A. If a Receiving Party learns that, by inadvertence or otherwise, it has disclosed
23 Protected Material to any person or in any circumstance not authorized under this
24 Stipulated Protective Order, the Receiving Party must immediately (1) notify in writing
1 the Designating Party of the unauthorized disclosures, (2) use its best efforts to retrieve
2 all unauthorized copies of the Protected Material, (3) inform the person or persons to
3 whom unauthorized disclosures were made of all the terms of this Order, and (4)
4 request such person or persons to execute the “Acknowledgment and Agreement to be
5 Bound” that is attached hereto as Exhibit A.
6 XII. INADVERTENT PRODUCTION OF PRIVILEGED OR OTHERWISE
7 PROTECTED MATERIAL
8 When a Producing Party gives notice to Receiving Parties that certain
9 inadvertently produced material is subject to a claim of privilege or other protection,
10 the obligations of the Receiving Parties are those set forth in Federal Rule of Civil
11 Procedure 26(b)(5)(B). This provision is not intended to modify whatever procedure
12 may be established in an e-discovery order that provides for production without prior
13 privilege review. Pursuant to Federal Rule of Evidence 502(d) and (e), insofar as the
14 parties reach an agreement on the effect of disclosure of a communication or
15 information covered by the attorney-client privilege or work product protection, the
16 parties may incorporate their agreement in the Stipulated Protective Order submitted
17 to the Court.
18 XIII. MISCELLANEOUS
19 A. Right to Further Relief
20 1. Nothing in this Order abridges the right of any person to seek its
21 modification by the Court in the future.
22 B. Right to Assert Other Objections
23 1. By stipulating to the entry of this Protective Order, no Party waives
24 any right it otherwise would have to object to disclosing or producing any
1 information or item on any ground not addressed in this Stipulated
2 Protective Order. Similarly, no Party waives any right to object on any
3 ground to use in evidence of any of the material covered by this Protective
4 Order.
5 C. Filing Protected Material
6 1. A Party that seeks to file under seal any Protected Material must
7 comply with Civil Local Rule 79-5. Protected Material may only be filed
8 under seal pursuant to a court order authorizing the sealing of the specific
9 Protected Material at issue. If a Party's request to file Protected Material
10 under seal is denied by the Court, then the Receiving Party may file the
11 information in the public record unless otherwise instructed by the Court.
12 XIV. FINAL DISPOSITION
13 A. After the final disposition of this Action, as defined in Section V, within sixty
14 (60) days of a written request by the Designating Party, each Receiving Party must
15 return all Protected Material to the Producing Party or destroy such material. As used
16 in this subdivision, “all Protected Material” includes all copies, abstracts, compilations,
17 summaries, and any other format reproducing or capturing any of the Protected
18 Material. Whether the Protected Material is returned or destroyed, the Receiving Party
19 must submit a written certification to the Producing Party (and, if not the same person
20 or entity, to the Designating Party) by the 60 day deadline that (1) identifies (by
21 category, where appropriate) all the Protected Material that was returned or destroyed
22 and (2) affirms that the Receiving Party has not retained any copies, abstracts,
23 compilations, summaries or any other format reproducing or capturing any of the
24 Protected Material. Notwithstanding this provision, Counsel are entitled to retain an
1 archival copy of all pleadings, motion papers, trial, deposition, and hearing transcripts,
2 legal memoranda, correspondence, deposition and trial exhibits, expert reports,
3 attorney work product, and consultant and expert work product, even if such materials
4 contain Protected Material. Any such archival copies that contain or constitute
5 Protected Material remain subject to this Protective Order as set forth in Section V.
6 B. Any violation of this Order may be punished by any and all appropriate
7 measures including, without limitation, contempt proceedings and/or monetary
8 sanctions.
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10 IT IS SO STIPULATED, THROUGH COUNSEL OF RECORD.
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Dated: July 9, 2025 Respectfully submitted,
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BILAL A. ESSAYLI
United States Attorney
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DAVID M. HARRIS
Assistant United States Attorney
14 Chief, Civil Division
JOANNE S. OSINOFF
15 Assistant United States Attorney
Chief, Complex and Defensive Litigation Section
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17 /s/ Jasmin Yang
JASMIN YANG
18 Assistant United States Attorney
19 Attorneys for Defendants
20 Dated: July 9, 2025 NATALIYA V. SIDOROVA
/s/Nataliya Sidorova
21
Attorney for Plaintiff
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1 FOR GOOD CAUSE SHOWN, IT IS SO ORDERED.
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Dated: July 14, 2025 /s/ Autumn D. Spaeth
3 HONORABLE AUTUMN D. SPAETH
United States Magistrate Judge
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1 EXHIBIT A
ACKNOWLEDGMENT AND AGREEMENT TO BE BOUND
2
3 I, [print or type full name], of
4 [print or type full address], declare under penalty of perjury that I
5 have read in its entirety and understand the Stipulated Protective Order that was issue
6 by the United States District Court for the Central District of California on [DATE] in
7 the case of [insert formal name of the case and the
8 number and initials assigned to it by the Court]. I agree to comply with and to be
9 bound by all the terms of this Stipulated Protective Order and I understand and
10 acknowledge that failure to so comply could expose me to sanctions and punishment in
11 the nature of contempt. I solemnly promise that I will not disclose in any manner any
12 information or item that is subject to this Stipulated Protective Order to any person or
13 entity except 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 address and
19 telephone number] as my California agent for service of process in connection with this
20 action or any proceedings related to enforcement of this Stipulated Protective Order.
21 Date:
22 City and State where sworn and signed:
23 Printed Name:
24 Signature: