The opinion
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8 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
9 CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
WESTERN DIVISION
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VENUMADHAV CHALUVADI; CASE NO. 8:25-cv-00441-DOC-JDE
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AMBICA ILINDRA; SUNIL
12 SARVEPALLI; and WHITECRTOSS
APOTHECARY LLC, a California
13 Company, STIPULATED PROTECTIVE
ORDER
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Plaintiffs,
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v.
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RAVJI (“RAJ”) LUNAGARIA;
17 AMAR LUNAGARIA; SAMEER
18 RAKHOLIA; KAMAL PATEL; and
NSKAPE, INC., a California
19 Corporation,
20 Defendants.
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22 Based on the parties’ Stipulation (Dkt. 58) and for good cause shown, the
23 Court finds and orders as follows.
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1 I. PURPOSES AND LIMITATIONS
2 Discovery in this action is likely to involve production of confidential,
proprietary, or private information for which special protection from public
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disclosure and from use for any purpose other than prosecuting this litigation
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may be warranted. Accordingly, the parties hereby stipulate to and petition
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the Court to enter this Stipulated Protective Order (the “Order”). This Order
6 does not confer blanket protections on all disclosures or responses to
7 discovery. The protection it affords from public disclosure and use extends
8 only to the limited information or items that are entitled to confidential
treatment under the applicable legal principles. The parties further
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acknowledge that this Order does not entitle them to file confidential
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information under seal; Civil Local Rule 79-5 sets forth the procedures that
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must be followed and the standards that will be applied when a party seeks
12 permission from the Court to file material under seal.
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II. GOOD CAUSE STATEMENT
14 Discovery in this action is likely to involve patient-specific protected
15 health information within the meaning of the Health Insurance Portability
and Accountability Act of 1996 and its implementing regulations (“PHI”), as
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well as commercial, financial, and/or proprietary information for which
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special protection from public disclosure is warranted. Such information
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consists of, among other things, PHI, confidential business or financial
19 information (including but not limited to tax returns and prices paid for
20 inventory of particular medications at certain times), information implicating
21 non-parties’ privacy rights, and other information otherwise generally
unavailable to the public. Accordingly, to expedite the flow of information, to
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facilitate the prompt resolution of disputes over confidentiality of discovery
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materials, to adequately protect information that the parties are required to
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and/or entitled to keep confidential, to ensure that the parties are permitted
1 reasonable necessary uses of such material in preparation for and in the
2 conduct of trial, to address their handling at the end of the litigation, and to
serve the ends of justice, a protective order for such information is justified in
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this matter. It is the intent of the parties that information will not be
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designated as confidential for tactical reasons and that nothing be so
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designated without a good faith belief that it has been maintained in a
6 confidential, nonpublic manner, and there is good cause why it should not be
7 part of the public record of this case.
8 III. DEFINITIONS
9 A. Action: This pending federal lawsuit.
B. Challenging Party: A Party or Non-Party that challenges the
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designation of information or items under this Order.
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C. “CONFIDENTIAL” Information or Items: Information
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(regardless of how it is generated, stored or maintained) or tangible things that
13 qualify for protection under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(c), and as
14 specified above in the Good Cause Statement.
15 D. Counsel: Attorneys retained to represent or advise a party to this
Action and have appeared in this Action on behalf of that party or are
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affiliated with a law firm which has appeared on behalf of that party, and
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includes support staff.
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E. Designating Party: A Party or Non-Party that designates
19 information or items that it produces in disclosures or in responses to
20 discovery as “CONFIDENTIAL.”
21 F. Discovery Material: All items or information, regardless of the
medium or manner in which it is generated, stored, or maintained (including,
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among other things, testimony, transcripts, and tangible things), that are
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produced or generated in disclosures or responses to discovery in this matter.
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1 G. Expert: A person with specialized knowledge or experience in a
2 matter pertinent to the litigation who has been retained by a Party or its
Counsel to serve as an expert witness or as a consultant in this Action.
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H. Non-Party: Any natural person, partnership, corporation,
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association, or other legal entity not named as a Party to this Action.
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I. Party: Any party to this Action, including all of its officers,
6 directors, employees, consultants, retained experts, and Counsel (and their
7 support staffs).
J. Producer: A Party or Non-Party that produces Discovery Material
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in this Action.
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K. Professional Vendors: Persons or entities that provide litigation
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support services (e.g., photocopying, videotaping, translating, preparing
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exhibits, and organizing, storing, or retrieving data in any form or medium)
12 and their employees and subcontractors.
13 L. Protected Material: Any Discovery Material designated as
“CONFIDENTIAL.”
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M. Receiving Party: A Party that receives Discovery Material from a
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Producer.
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IV. SCOPE
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A. The protections conferred by this Order cover not only Protected
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Material but also (1) any information copied or extracted from Protected
19 Material; (2) all copies, excerpts, summaries, or compilations of Protected
20 Material; and (3) any testimony, conversations, or presentations by Parties or
21 their Counsel that might reveal Protected Material.
B. Any use of Protected Material at trial shall be governed by the
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orders of the trial judge. This Order does not govern the use of Protected
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Material at trial.
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1 V. DURATION
2 If this Action proceeds to trial, all of the information that was
designated as confidential or maintained pursuant to this Protective Order
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becomes public and presumptively available to all members of the public,
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including the press, unless compelling reasons supported by specific factual
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findings to proceed otherwise are made to the trial judge in advance of the
6 trial. See Kamakana v. City and County of Honolulu, 447 F.3d 1172, 1180-81
7 (9th Cir. 2006) (distinguishing “good cause” showing for sealing documents
8 produced in discovery from “compelling reasons” standard when merits-
related documents are part of court record). Accordingly, the terms of this
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Protective Order do not extend beyond the start of the trial.
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VI. DESIGNATING PROTECTED MATERIAL
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A. Exercise of Restraint and Care in Designating Protected Material
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1. Each Designating Party must take care to limit designation
13 to material that qualifies for protection under this Order. The Designating
14 Party must designate for protection only those parts of material, documents,
items, or oral or written communications that qualify so that other portions of
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the material, documents, items, or communications for which protection is
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not warranted are not swept unjustifiably within the ambit of this Order.
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2. Mass, indiscriminate, or routinized designations are
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prohibited. Designations shown to be clearly unjustified or made for an
19 improper purpose (e.g., to unnecessarily encumber the case development
20 process or to impose unnecessary expenses and burdens on other parties) may
expose the Designating Party to sanctions.
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3. If it comes to a Designating Party’s attention that
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information or items that it designated for protection do not qualify for
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protection, that Designating Party must promptly notify all other Parties that
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it is withdrawing the inapplicable designation.
1 B. Manner and Timing of Designations
2 1. Except as otherwise provided in this Order (see, e.g., Section
B(2)(b) below), or as otherwise stipulated or ordered, Disclosure or Discovery
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Material that qualifies for protection under this Order must be clearly so
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designated before the material is disclosed or produced.
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2. Designation under this Order requires the following:
6 a. For information in documentary form (e.g., paper or
7 electronic documents, but excluding transcripts of depositions or other pretrial
8 or trial proceedings), that the Producer affix a “CONFIDENTIAL” legend to
each page containing protected material. If only a part or parts of the material
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on a page qualifies for protection, the Producer also must clearly identify the
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protected part(s) (e.g., by making appropriate markings in the margins).
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b. A Party or Non-Party that makes original documents
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available for inspection need not designate them for protection until after the
13 inspecting Party has indicated which documents it would like copied and
14 produced. During the inspection and before the designation, all material made
available for inspection shall be deemed “CONFIDENTIAL.” After the
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inspecting Party has identified the documents it wants copied and produced,
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the Producer must determine which documents, or portions thereof, qualify
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for protection under this Order. Then, before producing the specified
18 documents, the Producer must affix a “CONFIDENTIAL legend” to each
19 page that contains Protected Material. If only a part or parts of the material on
20 a page qualifies for protection, the Producer also must clearly identify the
protected part(s) (e.g., by making appropriate markings in the margins).
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c. For depositions, that the Designating Party identify
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the Discovery Material (whether testimony or otherwise) as protected on the
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record, before the close of the deposition.
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1 d. For information produced in form other than
2 document and for any other tangible items, that the Producer affix in a
prominent place on the exterior of the container or containers in which the
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information is stored the legend “CONFIDENTIAL.” If only a portion or
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portions of the information warrants protection, the Producer, to the extent
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practicable, shall identify the protected portion(s).
6 C. Inadvertent Failure to Designate
7 If timely corrected, an inadvertent failure to designate qualified
information or items does not, standing alone, waive the Designating Party’s
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right to secure protection under this Order for such material. Upon timely
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correction of a designation, the Receiving Party must make reasonable efforts
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to assure that the material is treated in accordance with the provisions of this
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Order.
12 VII. CHALLENGING CONFIDENTIALITY DESIGNATIONS
13 A. Timing of Challenges
Any party or Non-Party may challenge a designation of confidentiality
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at any time that is consistent with the Court’s Scheduling Order.
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B. Meet and Confer
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The Challenging Party shall initiate the dispute resolution process under
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Local Rule 37-1 et seq., and, if not resolved, proceed under Local Rule 37-2.
18 C. The burden of persuasion in any such challenge proceeding shall
19 be on the Designating Party. Frivolous challenges and those made for an
improper purpose (e.g., to harass or impose unnecessary expenses and
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burdens on other parties) may expose the Challenging Party to sanctions.
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Unless the Designating Party has waived or withdrawn the confidentiality
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designation, all parties shall continue to afford the material in question the
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level of protection to which it is entitled under the Producer’s designation
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1 VIII. ACCESS TO AND USE OF PROTECTED MATERIAL
2 A. Basic Principles
1. A Receiving Party may use Protected Material that is
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disclosed or produced by another Party or by a Non-Party in this Action only
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for prosecuting, defending, or attempting to settle this Action. Such Protected
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Material may be disclosed only to the categories of persons and under the
6 conditions described in this Order. When the Action has been terminated, a
7 Receiving Party must comply with the provisions of Section XIV below.
8 2. Protected Material must be stored and maintained by a
Receiving Party at a location and in a secure manner that ensures that access
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is limited to the persons authorized under this Order.
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B. Disclosure of “CONFIDENTIAL” Information or Items
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1. Unless otherwise ordered by the Court or permitted in
12 writing by the Designating Party, a Receiving Party may disclose any
13 information or item designated “CONFIDENTIAL” only to:
a. The Receiving Party’s Counsel in this Action, as well
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as their employees to whom it is reasonably necessary to disclose the
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information for this Action;
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b. The officers, directors, and employees of the
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Receiving Party to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary for this Action;
18 c. Experts of the Receiving Party to whom disclosure is
19 reasonably necessary for this Action and who have signed the
“Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound” (Exhibit A);
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d. The Court and its personnel;
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e. Court reporters and their staff;
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f. Professional jury or trial consultants, mock jurors, and
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Professional Vendors to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary in the Action
24 and who have signed the “Acknowledgment and Agreement to be Bound”;
1 g. The author or recipient of a document containing the
2 information or a custodian or other person who otherwise possessed or knew
the information;
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h. During their depositions, witnesses, and attorneys for
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witnesses, in the Action to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary provided:
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(i) the deposing party requests that the witness sign the “Acknowledgment and
6 Agreement to Be Bound;” and (ii) they will not be permitted to keep any
7 confidential information unless they sign the “Acknowledgment and
Agreement to Be Bound,” unless otherwise agreed by the Designating Party
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or ordered by the Court. Pages of transcribed deposition testimony or exhibits
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to depositions that reveal Protected Material may be separately bound by the
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court reporter and may not be disclosed to anyone except as permitted under
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this Order; and
12 i. Any mediator or settlement officer, and their
13 supporting personnel, mutually agreed upon by any of the parties engaged in
settlement discussions.
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IX. PROTECTED MATERIAL SUBPOENAED OR ORDERED
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PRODUCED IN OTHER LITIGATION
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A. If a Party is served with a subpoena or a court order issued in
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other litigation that compels disclosure of any information or items designated
18 as “CONFIDENTIAL” in this Action, that Party must:
19 1. Promptly notify in writing the Designating Party. Such
notification shall include a copy of the subpoena or court order;
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2. Promptly notify in writing the party who caused the
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subpoena or order to issue in the other litigation that some or all of the
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material covered by the subpoena or order is subject to this Order. Such
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notification shall include a copy of this Order; and
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1 3. Cooperate with respect to all reasonable procedures sought to be
2 pursued by the Designating Party whose Protected Material may be affected.
B. If the Designating Party timely seeks a protective order, the Party
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served with the subpoena or court order shall not produce any information
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designated in this action as “CONFIDENTIAL” before a determination by
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the Court from which the subpoena or order issued, unless the Party has
6 obtained the Designating Party’s permission. The Designating Party shall bear
7 the burden and expense of seeking protection in that court of its confidential
material and nothing in these provisions should be construed as authorizing or
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encouraging a Receiving Party in this Action to disobey a lawful directive
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from another court.
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X. A NON-PARTY’S PROTECTED MATERIAL SOUGHT TO BE
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PRODUCED IN THIS LITIGATION
12 A. The terms of this Order apply to information produced by a Non-
13 Party in this Action and designated as “CONFIDENTIAL.” Such
14 information produced by Non-Parties in the Action is protected by the
remedies and relief provided by this Order. Nothing in these provisions should
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be construed as prohibiting a Non-Party from seeking additional protections.
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B. In the event that a Party is required, by a valid discovery request,
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to produce a Non-Party’s confidential information in its possession, and the
18 Party is subject to an agreement with the Non-Party not to produce the Non-
19 Party’s confidential information, then the Party shall:
1. Promptly notify in writing the Requesting Party and the
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Non-Party that some or all of the information requested is subject to a
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confidentiality agreement with a Non-Party;
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2. Promptly provide the Non-Party with a copy of this Order,
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the relevant discovery request(s), and a reasonably specific description of the
24 information requested; and
1 3. Make the information requested available for inspection by
2 the Non-Party, if requested.
C. If the Non-Party fails to seek a protective order from this court
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within 14 days of receiving the notice and accompanying information, the
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Receiving Party may produce the Non-Party’s confidential information
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responsive to the discovery request. If the Non-Party timely seeks a protective
6 order, the Receiving Party shall not produce any information in its possession
7 or control that is subject to the confidentiality agreement with the Non-Party
before a determination by the court. Absent a court order to the contrary, the
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Non-Party shall bear the burden and expense of seeking protection in this
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court of its Protected Material.
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XI. UNAUTHORIZED DISCLOSURE OF PROTECTED MATERIAL
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If a Receiving Party learns that, by inadvertence or otherwise, it has
12 disclosed Protected Material to any person or in any circumstance not
13 authorized under this Order, the Receiving Party must immediately (1) notify
in writing the Designating Party of the unauthorized disclosures, (2) use its
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best efforts to retrieve all unauthorized copies of the Protected Material, (3)
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inform the person or persons to whom unauthorized disclosures were made of
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all the terms of this Order, and (4) request such person or persons to execute
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the “Acknowledgment and Agreement to be Bound” that is attached hereto as
18 Exhibit A.
19 XII. INADVERTENT PRODUCTION OF PRIVILEGED OR
20 OTHERWISE PROTECTED MATERIAL
When a Producer gives notice to Receiving Parties that certain
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inadvertently produced material is subject to a claim of privilege or other
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protection, the obligations of the Receiving Parties are those set forth in
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Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(b)(5)(B). This provision is not intended to
24 modify whatever procedure may be established in an e-discovery order that
1 provides for production without prior privilege review. Pursuant to Federal
2 Rule of Evidence 502(d) and (e), insofar as the parties reach an agreement on
the effect of inadvertent disclosure of a communication or information
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protected by the attorney-client privilege or the work-product doctrine, the
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parties may incorporate their agreement in this Order by providing for such
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incorporation in such an agreement, without filing the agreement with the
6 Court.
7 XIII. MISCELLANEOUS
8 A. Right to Further Relief
Nothing in this Order abridges the right of any person to seek its
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modification by the Court in the future.
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B. Right to Assert Other Objections
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1. By stipulating to the entry of this Order, no Party waives
12 any right it otherwise would have to object to disclosing or producing any
13 information or item on any ground not addressed in this Order. Similarly, no
Party waives any right to object on any ground to use in evidence of any of
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the material covered by this Order.
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C. Filing Protected Material
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1. A Party that seeks to file under seal any Protected Material
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must comply with Civil Local Rule 79-5. Protected Material may only be filed
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under seal pursuant to a court order authorizing the sealing of the specific
19 Protected Material at issue. If a Party's request to file Protected Material under
20 seal is denied by the Court, then the Receiving Party may file the information
in the public record unless otherwise instructed by the Court.
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XIV. FINAL DISPOSITION
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A. After the final disposition of this Action, as defined in Section V,
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within sixty (60) days of a written request by the Designating Party, each
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Receiving Party must return all Protected Material to the Producer or destroy
1 material. As used in this subdivision, “all Protected Material” includes
> copies, abstracts, compilations, summaries, and any other format
3 reproducing or capturing any of the Protected Material. Whether the
Protected Material is returned or destroyed, the Receiving Party must submit
a written certification to the Producer (and, if not the same person or entity, to
> II the Designating Party) by the 60 day deadline that (1) identifies (by category,
© || where appropriate) all the Protected Material that was returned or destroyed
7 || and (2) affirms that the Receiving Party has not retained any copies, abstracts,
g ||}compilations, summaries or any other format reproducing or capturing any of
9 the Protected Material. Notwithstanding this provision, Counsel are entitled
to retain an archival copy of all pleadings, motion papers, trial, deposition,
and hearing transcripts, legal memoranda, correspondence, deposition and
ll trial exhibits, expert reports, attorney work product, and consultant and expert
12 || work product, even if such materials contain Protected Material. Any such
13 archival copies that contain or constitute Protected Material remain subject to
14 || this Protective Order as set forth in Section V.
is B. Any violation of this Order may be punished by any and all
appropriate measures including, without limitation, contempt proceedings
6 and/or monetary sanctions.
‘7 || FOR GOOD CAUSE SHOWN, IT IS SO ORDERED.
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19 Dated: August 20, 2025_ on Le.
JOHN D. EARLY : :
20 United States Magistrate Judge
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1 EXHIBIT A
ACKNOWLEDGMENT AND AGREEMENT TO BE BOUND
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3 I, [print or type full name], of
4 [print or type full address], declare under penalty of perjury that I have read in
5 its entirety and understand the Stipulated Protective Order that was issue by the United States
6 District Court for the Central District of California in the case of
7 [insert formal name of the case and the number and initials assigned to it by the Court].
8 I agree to comply with and to be bound by all the terms of this Stipulated Protective Order and I
9 understand and acknowledge that failure to so comply could expose me to sanctions and
10 punishment in the nature of contempt. I solemnly promise that I will not disclose in any manner
11 any information or item that is subject to this Stipulated Protective Order to any person or entity
12 except in strict compliance with the provisions of this Order.
13 I further agree to submit to the jurisdiction of the United States District Court for the
14 Central District of California for the purpose of enforcing the terms of this Stipulated Protective
15 Order, even if such enforcement proceedings occur after termination of this action. I hereby
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appoint [print or type full name] of
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[print or type full address and telephone number] as my California agent for
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service of process in connection with this action or any proceedings related to enforcement of
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this Stipulated Protective Order.
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Date:
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City and State where sworn and signed:
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Printed Name:
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Signature:
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