The opinion
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6 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
7 CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
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JESSAMYN HUANG
9 Case No. 8:25-cv-01904-DFM
Plaintiff,
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v.
STIPULATED PROTECTIVE
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ORDER
12 GARRISON FRADELLA, Officer,
Irvine Police Department;
13 MICHAEL
14 KENT, Chief, Irvine Police
Department; CITY OF IRVINE;
15 and DOES 1-10,inclusive
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Defendant.
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20 1. INTRODUCTION
21 1.1 PURPOSES AND LIMITATIONS
22 Discovery in this action is likely to involve production of
23 confidential, proprietary, or private information for which special
24 protection from public disclosure and from use for any purpose other
25 than prosecuting this litigation may be warranted. Accordingly, the
26 parties hereby stipulate to and petition the Court to enter the following
27 Stipulated Protective Order. The parties acknowledge that this Order
1 does not confer blanket protections on all disclosures or responses to
2 discovery and that the protection it affords from public disclosure and
3 use extends only to the limited information or items that are entitled to
4 confidential treatment under the applicable legal principles. The parties
5 further acknowledge, as set forth in Section 12.3, below, that this
6 Stipulated Protective Order does not entitle them to file confidential
7 information under seal; Civil Local Rule 79-5 sets forth the procedures
8 that must be followed and the standards that will be applied when a
9 party seeks permission from the court to file material under seal.
10 1.2 GOOD CAUSE STATEMENT
11 This action is a civil rights lawsuit in which the Plaintiff alleges
12 that she was harmed by employees of the City of Irvine, and the City’s
13 management of its police department. This action involves documents
14 that one or more parties contend are confidential, including documents
15 relating to ongoing investigations, peace officer personnel file documents,
16 as well as personal identifying information and medical records of
17 parties and third-party witnesses (i.e. addresses, telephone numbers, etc.
18 and Plaintiff’s medical records), for which special protection from public
19 disclosure and from use for any purpose other than prosecution of this
20 action is not warranted. Such confidential and proprietary materials and
21 information consist of, among other things, documents produced in
22 connection with personnel file information; personal identifying
23 information of any party or third party witness, otherwise
24 generally unavailable to the public, or which may be privileged or
25 otherwise protected from disclosure under state or federal statutes, court
26 rules, case decisions, or common law; and medical records.
27 As discussed herein, there is good cause and a particularized need
1 privacy in peace officer personnel records, as well as personal identifying
2 information and medical records of parties and third-party witnesses.
3 First, Plaintiff contends that discovery is expected to involve
4 extensive amounts of information related to Plaintiff’s sensitive mental
5 health records, medical records and conditions. Disclosure threatens
6 Plaintiff’s privacy interests, and a protective order is warranted to
7 ensure they are protected. E.g. Allen v. Woodford, No. CV-F-05-1104
8 OWW LJO, 2007 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 11002, at *16 (E.D. Cal. Jan. 30,
9 2007).
10 Second, Defendants contend that discovery is expected to include
11 records contained within confidential peace officer personnel files,
12 related internal affairs investigations, and investigatory records related
13 to the underlying incident, which includes but is not limited to: body-
14 worn camera recordings depicting Plaintiff and the investigating officers
15 at the scene of the underlying incident and in custody; audio recordings
16 of telephone conversations between Plaintiff and Irvine Police
17 Department personnel, and any and all records associated with any
18 subsequent internal affairs investigations (which notably are routinely
19 exempt from public disclosure pursuant to state law) in response to
20 complaints made by Plaintiff related to the underlying incident that is
21 the subject of Plaintiff’s Complaint in this Action.
22 Accordingly, to expedite the flow of information, to facilitate the
23 prompt resolution of disputes over confidentiality of discovery materials,
24 to adequately protect information the parties are entitled to keep
25 confidential, to ensure that the parties are permitted reasonably
26 necessary uses of such material in preparation for and in the conduct of
27 trial, to address their handling at the end of the litigation, and serve the
1 matter. It is the intent of the parties that information will not be
2 designated as confidential for tactical reasons and that nothing be so
3 designated without a good faith belief that it has been maintained in a
4 confidential, non-public manner, and there is good cause why it should
5 not be part of the public record of this case.
6 2. DEFINITIONS
7 2.1 Action: This pending federal lawsuit.
8 2.2 Challenging Party: A Party or Non-Party that challenges the
9 designation of information or items under this Order.
10 2.3 “CONFIDENTIAL” Information or Items: Information
11 (regardless of how it is generated, stored or maintained) or tangible
12 things that qualify for protection under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure
13 26(c), and as specified above in the Good Cause Statement. [Note: Any
14 request for a two-tiered, attorney-eyes-only protective order that
15 designates certain material as “Highly Confidential” will require
16 a separate and detailed showing of need.]
17 2.4 Counsel: Outside Counsel of Record and House Counsel (as
18 well as their support staff).
19 2.5 Designating Party: A Party or Non-Party that designates
20 information or items that it produces in disclosures or in responses to
21 discovery as “CONFIDENTIAL.”
22 2.6 Disclosure or Discovery Material: All items or information,
23 regardless of the medium or manner in which it is generated, stored, or
24 maintained (including, among other things, testimony, transcripts, and
25 tangible things), that are produced or generated in disclosures or
26 responses to discovery in this matter.
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1 2.7 Expert: A person with specialized knowledge or experience in
2 a matter pertinent to the litigation who has been retained by a Party or
3 its counsel to serve as an expert witness or as a consultant in this Action.
4 2.8 Non-Party: Any natural person, partnership, corporation,
5 association, or other legal entity not named as a Party to this action.
6 2.9 Outside Counsel of Record: Attorneys who are not employees
7 of a party to this Action but are retained to represent or advise a party to
8 this Action and have appeared in this Action on behalf of that party or
9 are affiliated with a law firm which has appeared on behalf of that party,
10 and includes support staff.
11 2.10 Party: Any party to this Action, including all of its officers,
12 directors, employees, consultants, retained experts, and Outside Counsel
13 of Record (and their support staffs).
14 2.11 Producing Party: A Party or Non-Party that produces
15 Disclosure or Discovery Material in this Action.
16 2.12 Professional Vendors: Persons or entities that provide
17 litigation support services (e.g., photocopying, videotaping, translating,
18 preparing exhibits or demonstrations, and organizing, storing, or
19 retrieving data in any form or medium) and their employees and
20 subcontractors.
21 2.13 Protected Material: Any Disclosure or Discovery Material
22 that is designated as “CONFIDENTIAL.”
23 2.14 Receiving Party: A Party that receives Disclosure or
24 Discovery Material from a Producing Party.
25 3. SCOPE
26 The protections conferred by this Stipulation and Order cover not
27 only Protected Material (as defined above), but also (1) any information
1 summaries, or compilations of Protected Material; and (3) any testimony,
2 conversations, or presentations by Parties or their Counsel that might
3 reveal Protected Material.
4 This Order does not govern the use of Protected Material at trial.
5 Any use of Protected Material at trial will be governed by the orders of
6 the trial judge.
7 4. DURATION
8 Once a case proceeds to trial, all of the information that was
9 designated as confidential or maintained pursuant to this protective
10 order becomes public and will be presumptively available to all members
11 of the public, including the press, unless compelling reasons supported
12 by specific factual findings to proceed otherwise are made to the trial
13 judge in advance of the trial. See Kamakana v. City and County of
14 Honolulu, 447 F.3d 1172, 1180-81 (9th Cir. 2006) (distinguishing “good
15 cause” showing for sealing documents produced in discovery from
16 “compelling reasons” standard when merits-related documents are part
17 of court record). Accordingly, the terms of this protective order do not
18 extend beyond the commencement of the trial.
19 5. DESIGNATING PROTECTED MATERIAL
20 5.1 Exercise of Restraint and Care in Designating Material for
21 Protection. Each Party or Non-Party that designates information or
22 items for protection under this Order must take care to limit any such
23 designation to specific material that qualifies under the appropriate
24 standards. The Designating Party must designate for protection only
25 those parts of material, documents, items, or oral or written
26 communications that qualify so that other portions of the material,
27 documents, items, or communications for which protection is not
1 Mass, indiscriminate, or routinized designations are prohibited.
2 Designations that are shown to be clearly unjustified or that have been
3 made for an improper purpose (e.g., to unnecessarily encumber the case
4 development process or to impose unnecessary expenses and burdens on
5 other parties) may expose the Designating Party to sanctions, subject to
6 the court’s discretion.
7 If it comes to a Designating Party’s attention that information or
8 items that it designated for protection do not qualify for protection, that
9 Designating Party must promptly notify all other Parties that it is
10 withdrawing the inapplicable designation.
11 5.2 Manner and Timing of Designations. Except as otherwise
12 provided in this Order (see, e.g., second paragraph of section 5.2(a)
13 below), or as otherwise stipulated or ordered, Disclosure or Discovery
14 Material that qualifies for protection under this Order must be clearly so
15 designated before the material is disclosed or produced.
16 Designation in conformity with this Order requires:
17 (a) For information in documentary form (e.g., paper or electronic
18 documents, but excluding transcripts of depositions or other pretrial or
19 trial proceedings), that the Producing Party affix at a minimum, the
20 legend “CONFIDENTIAL” (hereinafter “CONFIDENTIAL legend”), to
21 each page that contains protected material. If only a portion or portions
22 of the material on a page qualifies for protection, the Producing Party
23 also must clearly identify the protected portion(s) (e.g., by making
24 appropriate markings in the margins).
25 A Party or Non-Party that makes original documents available for
26 inspection need not designate them for protection until after the
27 inspecting Party has indicated which documents it would like copied and
1 material made available for inspection will be deemed
2 “CONFIDENTIAL.” After the inspecting Party has identified the
3 documents it wants copied and produced, the Producing Party must
4 determine which documents, or portions thereof, qualify for protection
5 under this Order. Then, before producing the specified documents, the
6 Producing Party must affix the “CONFIDENTIAL legend” to each page
7 that contains Protected Material. If only a portion or portions of the
8 material on a page qualifies for protection, the Producing Party also
9 must clearly identify the protected portion(s) (e.g., by making
10 appropriate markings in the margins).
11 (b) For testimony given in depositions that the Designating Party
12 identify the Disclosure or Discovery Material on the record, before the
13 close of the deposition all protected testimony.
14 (c) For information produced in some form other than documentary
15 and for any other tangible items, that the Producing Party affix in a
16 prominent place on the exterior of the container or containers in which
17 the information is stored the legend “CONFIDENTIAL.” If only a
18 portion or portions of the information warrants protection, the Producing
19 Party, to the extent practicable, will identify the protected portion(s).
20 5.3 Inadvertent Failures to Designate. If timely corrected, an
21 inadvertent failure to designate qualified information or items does not,
22 standing alone, waive the Designating Party’s right to secure protection
23 under this Order for such material. Upon timely correction of a
24 designation, the Receiving Party must make reasonable efforts to assure
25 that the material is treated in accordance with the provisions of this
26 Order.
27 6. CHALLENGING CONFIDENTIALITY DESIGNATIONS
1 a designation of confidentiality at any time that is consistent with the
2 Court’s Scheduling Order.
3 6.2 Meet and Confer. The Challenging Party will initiate the
4 dispute resolution process (and, if necessary, file a discovery motion)
5 under Local Rule 37.1 et seq.
6 6.3 The burden of persuasion in any such challenge proceeding
7 will be on the Designating Party. Frivolous challenges, and those made
8 for an improper purpose (e.g., to harass or impose unnecessary expenses
9 and burdens on other parties) may expose the Challenging Party to
10 sanctions, subject to the court’s discretion. Unless the Designating Party
11 has waived or withdrawn the confidentiality designation, all parties will
12 continue to afford the material in question the level of protection to
13 which it is entitled under the Producing Party’s designation until the
14 Court rules on the challenge.
15 7. ACCESS TO AND USE OF PROTECTED MATERIAL
16 7.1 Basic Principles. A Receiving Party may use Protected
17 Material that is disclosed or produced by another Party or by a Non-
18 Party in connection with this Action only for prosecuting, defending, or
19 attempting to settle this Action. Such Protected Material may be
20 disclosed only to the categories of persons and under the conditions
21 described in this Order. When the Action has been terminated, a
22 Receiving Party must comply with the provisions of section 13 below
23 (FINAL DISPOSITION).
24 Protected Material must be stored and maintained by a Receiving
25 Party at a location and in a secure manner that ensures that access is
26 limited to the persons authorized under this Order.
27 7.2 Disclosure of “CONFIDENTIAL” Information or Items.
1 Designating Party, a Receiving Party may disclose any information or
2 item designated “CONFIDENTIAL” only to:
3 (a) the Receiving Party’s Outside Counsel of Record in this
4 Action, as well as employees of said Outside Counsel of Record to whom
5 it is reasonably necessary to disclose the information for this Action;
6 (b) Experts (as defined in this Order) of the Receiving Party to
7 whom disclosure is reasonably necessary for this Action and who have
8 signed the “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound” (Exhibit A);
9 (c) The Court and its personnel;
10 (d) Court reporters and their staff;
11 (e) Professional jury or trial consultants, mock jurors, and
12 Professional Vendors to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary for this
13 Action and who have signed the “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be
14 Bound” (Exhibit A);
15 (f) The author or recipient of a document containing the
16 information or a custodian or other person who otherwise possessed or
17 knew the information;
18 (g) During their depositions, witnesses, and attorneys for
19 witnesses, in the Action to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary
20 provided: (1) the deposing party requests that the witness sign the form
21 attached as Exhibit A hereto; and (2) they will not be permitted to keep
22 any confidential information unless they sign the “Acknowledgment and
23 Agreement to Be Bound” (Exhibit A), unless otherwise agreed by the
24 Designating Party or ordered by the court. Pages of transcribed
25 deposition testimony or exhibits to depositions that reveal Protected
26 Material may be separately bound by the court reporter and may not be
27 disclosed to anyone except as permitted under this Stipulated Protective
1 (h) Any mediator or settlement officer, and their supporting
2 personnel, mutually agreed upon by any of the parties engaged in
3 settlement discussions.
4 8. PROTECTED MATERIAL SUBPOENAED OR ORDERED
5 PRODUCED IN OTHER LITIGATION
6 If a Party is served with a subpoena or a court order issued in other
7 litigation that compels disclosure of any information or items designated
8 in this Action as “CONFIDENTIAL,” that Party must:
9 (a) Promptly notify in writing the Designating Party. Such
10 notification will include a copy of the subpoena or court order;
11 (b) Promptly notify in writing the party who caused the
12 subpoena or order to issue in the other litigation that some or all of the
13 material covered by the subpoena or order is subject to this Protective
14 Order. Such notification will include a copy of this Stipulated Protective
15 Order; and
16 (c) Cooperate with respect to all reasonable procedures sought to
17 be pursued by the Designating Party whose Protected Material may be
18 affected.
19 If the Designating Party timely seeks a protective order, the Party
20 served with the subpoena or court order will not produce any information
21 designated in this action as “CONFIDENTIAL” before a determination
22 by the court from which the subpoena or order issued, unless the Party
23 has obtained the Designating Party’s permission. The Designating Party
24 will bear the burden and expense of seeking protection in that court of its
25 confidential material and nothing in these provisions should be
26 construed as authorizing or encouraging a Receiving Party in this Action
27 to disobey a lawful directive from another court.
1 9. A NON-PARTY’S PROTECTED MATERIAL SOUGHT TO BE
2 PRODUCED IN THIS LITIGATION
3 (a) The terms of this Order are applicable to information
4 produced by a Non-Party in this Action and designated as
5 “CONFIDENTIAL.” Such information produced by Non-Parties in
6 connection with this litigation is protected by the remedies and relief
7 provided by this Order. Nothing in these provisions should be construed
8 as prohibiting a Non-Party from seeking additional protections.
9 (b) In the event that a Party is required, by a valid discovery
10 request, to produce a Non-Party’s confidential information in its
11 possession, and the Party is subject to an agreement with the Non-Party
12 not to produce the Non-Party’s confidential information, then the Party
13 will:
14 (1) Promptly notify in writing the Requesting Party and the
15 Non-Party that some or all of the information requested is subject to a
16 confidentiality agreement with a Non-Party;
17 (2) Promptly provide the Non-Party with a copy of the
18 Stipulated Protective Order in this Action, the relevant discovery
19 request(s), and a reasonably specific description of the information
20 requested; and
21 (3) Make the information requested available for inspection
22 by the Non-Party, if requested.
23 (c) If the Non-Party fails to seek a protective order from this
24 court within 14 days of receiving the notice and accompanying
25 information, the Receiving Party may produce the Non-Party’s
26 confidential information responsive to the discovery request. If the Non-
27 Party timely seeks a protective order, the Receiving Party will not
1 confidentiality agreement with the Non-Party before a determination by
2 the court. Absent a court order to the contrary, the Non-Party will bear
3 the burden and expense of seeking protection in this court of its
4 Protected Material.
5 10. UNAUTHORIZED DISCLOSURE OF PROTECTED MATERIAL
6 If a Receiving Party learns that, by inadvertence or otherwise, it
7 has disclosed Protected Material to any person or in any circumstance
8 not authorized under this Stipulated Protective Order, the Receiving
9 Party must immediately (a) notify in writing the Designating Party of
10 the unauthorized disclosures, (b) use its best efforts to retrieve all
11 unauthorized copies of the Protected Material, (c) inform the person or
12 persons to whom unauthorized disclosures were made of all the terms of
13 this Order, and (d) request such person or persons to execute the
14 “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound” that is attached hereto
15 as Exhibit A.
16 11. INADVERTENT PRODUCTION OF PRIVILEGED OR
17 OTHERWISE PROTECTED MATERIAL
18 When a Producing Party gives notice to Receiving Parties that
19 certain inadvertently produced material is subject to a claim of privilege
20 or other protection, the obligations of the Receiving Parties are those set
21 forth in Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(b)(5)(B). This provision is not
22 intended to modify whatever procedure may be established in an e-
23 discovery order that provides for production without prior privilege
24 review. Pursuant to Federal Rule of Evidence 502(d) and (e), insofar as
25 the parties reach an agreement on the effect of disclosure of a
26 communication or information covered by the attorney-client privilege or
27 work product protection, the parties may incorporate their agreement in
1 12. MISCELLANEOUS
2 12.1 Right to Further Relief. Nothing in this Order abridges the
3 right of any person to seek its modification by the Court in the future.
4 12.2 Right to Assert Other Objections. By stipulating to the entry
5 of this Protective Order no Party waives any right it otherwise would
6 have to object to disclosing or producing any information or item on any
7 ground not addressed in this Stipulated Protective Order. Similarly, no
8 Party waives any right to object on any ground to use in evidence of any
9 of the material covered by this Protective Order.
10 12.3 Filing Protected Material. A Party that seeks to file under
11 seal any Protected Material must comply with Civil Local Rule 79-5.
12 Protected Material may only be filed under seal pursuant to a court order
13 authorizing the sealing of the specific Protected Material at issue. If a
14 Party's request to file Protected Material under seal is denied by the
15 court, then the Receiving Party may file the information in the public
16 record unless otherwise instructed by the court.
17 13. FINAL DISPOSITION
18 After the final disposition of this Action, as defined in paragraph 4,
19 within 60 days of a written request by the Designating Party, each
20 Receiving Party must return all Protected Material to the Producing
21 Party or destroy such material. Each Receiving Party or Producing
22 Party will have 60 days after the final disposition of the action to
23 challenge a Protected Material designation, such that a Party is only
24 obligated to return or destroy material that has been deemed properly
25 designated as Protected Material. As used in this subdivision, “all
26 Protected Material” includes all copies, abstracts, compilations,
27 summaries, and any other format reproducing or capturing any of the
1 destroyed, the Receiving Party must submit a written certification to the
2 Producing Party (and, if not the same person or entity, to the
3 Designating Party) by the 60 day deadline that (1) identifies (by
4 category, where appropriate) all the Protected Material that was
5 returned or destroyed and (2) affirms that the Receiving Party has not
6 retained any copies, abstracts, compilations, summaries or any other
7 format reproducing or capturing any of the Protected Material.
8 Notwithstanding this provision, Counsel are entitled to retain an
9 archival copy of all pleadings, motion papers, trial, deposition, and
10 hearing transcripts, legal memoranda, correspondence, deposition and
11 trial exhibits, expert reports, attorney work product, and consultant and
12 expert work product, even if such materials contain Protected Material.
13 Any such archival copies that contain or constitute Protected Material
14 remain subject to this Protective Order as set forth in Section 4
15 (DURATION).
16 14. Any willful violation of this Order may be punished by civil or
17 criminal contempt proceedings, financial or evidentiary sanctions,
18 reference to disciplinary authorities, or other appropriate action at the
19 discretion of the Court.
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1 || ITIS SO STIPULATED, THROUGH COUNSEL OF RECORD.
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3 || DATED:April 23, 2026 /s/ Karen Kartun
4 Paul Hoffman
John Washington
5 Karen Kartun
Attorneys for Plaintiff
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8 . ES
g || DATED: April 23, 2026 LORS
Kelsey Quist
10 Samantha Lamm
11 Jeffrey Melching
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Attorneys for Defendant
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|| FOR GOOD CAUSE SHOWN, IT IS SO ORDERED.
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DATED:_April 27, 2026
19 HON. DOUGLAS F. McCORMICK
20 United States Magistrate Judge
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1 EXHIBIT A
2 ACKNOWLEDGMENT AND AGREEMENT TO BE BOUND
3 I, _____________________________ [full name], of
4 _________________ [full address], declare under penalty of perjury that I
5 have read in its entirety and understand the Stipulated Protective Order
6 that was issued by the United States District Court for the Central
7 District of California on [date] in the case of ___________ [insert case
8 name and number]. I agree to comply with and to be bound by all the
9 terms of this Stipulated Protective Order and I understand and
10 acknowledge that failure to so comply could expose me to sanctions and
11 punishment in the nature of contempt. I solemnly promise that I will not
12 disclose in any manner any information or item that is subject to this
13 Stipulated Protective Order to any person or entity except in strict
14 compliance with the provisions of this Order.
15 I further agree to submit to the jurisdiction of the United States
16 District Court for the Central District of California for the purpose of
17 enforcing the terms of this Stipulated Protective Order, even if such
18 enforcement proceedings occur after termination of this action. I hereby
19 appoint __________________________ [full name] of
20 _______________________________________ [full address and telephone
21 number] as my California agent for service of process in connection with
22 this action or any proceedings related to enforcement of this Stipulated
23 Protective Order.
24 Date: ______________________________________
25 City and State where signed: _________________________________
26 Printed name: _______________________________
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