The opinion
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8 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
9 EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
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JASON LAWRENCE SHEPARD, Case No. 1:25-cv-00822-JLT-SAB
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Plaintiff, ORDER REGARDING STIPULATED
12 PROTECTIVE ORDER
v.
13 (ECF No. 43)
THE CITY OF FRESNO, et al.,
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Defendants.
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16 1. PROTECTIVE ORDER REGARDING CONFIDENTIAL RECORDS
17 A. DEFINITIONS
18 1.1 Action: This pending federal lawsuit in Jason Lawrence Shepard v. City of
19 Fresno, et. al., 1:25-cv-00822-JLT-SAB.
20 1.2 Challenging Party: a party or non-party that challenges the designation of
21 information or items under this Order.
22 1.3 “CONFIDENTIAL” Information or Items: information, in documentary or
23 electronic form, or tangible things that qualify for protection under Rule 26(c) of the Federal
24 Rules of Civil Procedure, as specified above in the Good Cause Statement of the Stipulation and
25 Joint Request for Protective Order Regarding Confidential Documents, including the following
26 information or items: peace officer personnel records defined by California Penal Code sections
27 832.5, 832.7, 832.8, and the associated case law; medical records, mental health,
psychotherapeutic/counselor records, victim-advocate records, substance abuse records,
1 photographs, and personal identifying information of any third party witnesses or victims, e.g.
2 addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, and social security numbers in this matter, because
3 of the privacy interests at stake therein. Also including any private information, PHI (“Protected
4 Health Information” i.e., any information in the medical record or designated record set that can
5 be used to identify an individual and that was created, used, or disclosed in the course of
6 providing a health care service such as diagnosis or treatment), protected under statute will
7 become matters of public record. This includes confidential information covered under statutes,
8 including but not limited, (1) Victims of Crime Act (VOCA), 28 C.F.R. § 94.115; (2) Violence
9 Against Women Act (VAWA), 34 U.S.C. § 12291(b)(2)(A)–(B); (3) Family Violence Prevention
10 and Services Act (FVPSA), 42 U.S.C. § 10406 (c)(5)(B); (4) Federal Educational Rights &
11 Privacy Act (FERPA), 20 U.S.C. § 1232g (protections governing the handling of education
12 records); the Health Insurance Portability & Accountability Act (HIPAA), 42 U.S.C. § 1320d et
13 seq. (protections governing the handling of health records); and the Stored Communications Act
14 (SCA), 18 U.S.C. § 2701 et seq. (protections governing electronic communications and
15 transactions records).
16 1.4 Counsel: Outside Counsel of Record and House Counsel (as well as their support
17 staff).
18 1.5 Designating Party: a party or non-party that designates information or items that it
19 produces in disclosures or in responses to discovery as “CONFIDENTIAL.”
20 1.6 Disclosure or Discovery Material: all items or information, regardless of the
21 medium or manner in which it is generated, stored, or maintained (including, among other things,
22 testimony, transcripts, and tangible things), that are produced or generated in disclosures or
23 responses to discovery in this matter.
24 1.7 Expert: a person with specialized knowledge or experience in a matter pertinent to
25 the litigation who has been retained by a party or its counsel to serve as an expert witness or as a
26 consultant in this Action.
27 1.8 House Counsel: attorneys who are employees of a Party to this Action. House
1 1.9 Non-Party: any natural person, partnership, corporation, association, or other legal
2 entity not named as a Party to this Action.
3 1.10 Outside Counsel of Record: attorneys who are not employees of a Party to this
4 Action but are retained to represent or advise a Party to this Action and have appeared in this
5 Action on behalf of that Party or are affiliated with a law firm which has appeared on behalf of
6 that Party, and includes support staff.
7 1.11 Party: any party to this Action, including all of its officers, directors, employees,
8 consultants, retained experts, and Outside Counsel of Record (and their support staffs).
9 1.12 Producing Party: a Party or Non-Party that produces Disclosure or Discovery
10 Material in this Action.
11 1.13 Professional Vendors: persons or entities that provide litigation support services
12 (e.g., photocopying, videotaping, translating, preparing exhibits or demonstrations, and
13 organizing, storing, or retrieving data in any form or medium) and their employees and
14 subcontractors.
15 1.14 Protected Material: any Disclosure or Discovery Material that is designated as
16 “CONFIDENTIAL.”
17 1.15 Receiving Party: a party that receives Disclosure or Discovery Material from a
18 Producing Party.
19 1.16 Final Disposition: is defined as the conclusion of any appellate proceedings in this
20 Action, or, if no appeal is taken, when the time for filing of an appeal has run.
21 2. SCOPE OF PROTECTION
22 The protections conferred by this Protective Order cover not only Protected Material (as
23 defined above), but also (1) any information copied or extracted from Protected Material; (2) all
24 copies, excerpts, summaries, or compilations of Protected Material; and (3) any testimony,
25 conversations, or presentations by Parties or their Counsel that might reveal Protected Material.
26 Any use of Protected Material at trial shall be governed by the orders of the Court. This
27 Protective Order does not govern the use of Protected Material at trial.
1 A. PURPOSES AND LIMITATIONS
2 Disclosure and discovery in this case are likely to involve production of confidential,
3 proprietary, or private information for which special protection from public disclosure and from
4 use for any purpose other than this litigation may be warranted. Accordingly, the parties hereby
5 stipulate to the following Protective Order.
6 The parties acknowledge that the Protective Order does not confer blanket protections on
7 all disclosures or responses to discovery and that the protection it affords from public disclosure
8 and use extends only to the limited information or items that are entitled to confidential treatment
9 under the applicable legal principles. The parties further acknowledge, as set forth below, that
10 this Protective Order does not entitle them to file confidential information under seal except to
11 the extent specified herein; U.S. District Court, Eastern District Local Rules 141, 141.1, 143, and
12 251 set(s) forth the procedures that must be followed and reflects the standards that will be
13 applied when a Party seeks permission from the court to file material under seal.
14 Nothing in this Protective Order shall be construed so as to require or mandate that any
15 Party disclose or produce privileged information or records that could be designated as
16 Confidential Documents/Protected Material hereunder.
17 3. DURATION OF PROTECTED MATERIAL/CONFIDENTIAL
18 DOCUMENTS
19 Except as set forth below, the terms of this Protective Order apply through Final
20 Disposition of the Action. The Parties may stipulate that the they will be contractually bound by
21 the terms of Stipulation and Joint Request for Protective Order Regarding Confidential
22 Documents beyond Final Disposition, but will have to file a separate action for enforcement of
23 the agreement once all proceedings in this Action are complete.
24 Once a case proceeds to trial, any use of Protected Material shall be governed by the
25 orders of the Court.
26 4. DESIGNATING PROTECTED MATERIAL
27 4.1 Exercise of Restraint and Care in Designating Material for Protection. Each Party
1 take care to limit any such designation to specific material that qualifies under the appropriate
2 standards. The Designating Party must designate for protection only those parts of material,
3 documents, items, or oral or written communications that qualify so that other portions of the
4 material, documents, items, or communications for which protection is not warranted are not
5 swept unjustifiably within the ambit of this Protective Order.
6 Mass, indiscriminate, or routinized designations are prohibited. Designations that are
7 shown to be clearly unjustified or that have been made for an improper purpose (e.g., to
8 unnecessarily encumber the case development process or to impose unnecessary expenses and
9 burdens on other parties) may expose the Designating Party to sanctions.
10 If it comes to a Designating Party’s attention that information or items that it designated
11 for protection do not qualify for protection, that Designating Party must promptly notify all other
12 Parties that it is withdrawing the inapplicable designation.
13 4.2 Manner and Timing of Designations.
14 Except as otherwise provided in this Protective Order (see e.g., second paragraph of
15 section 4.2(a) below), or as otherwise stipulated or ordered, Disclosure or Discovery Material
16 that qualifies for protection under this Protective Order must be clearly so designated before the
17 material is disclosed or produced.
18 Designation in conformity with this Protective Order requires:
19 (a) For information in documentary form (e.g., paper or electronic documents, but
20 excluding transcripts of depositions or other pretrial or trial proceedings), that the Producing
21 Party affix at a minimum, the legend “CONFIDENTIAL” (hereinafter “CONFIDENTIAL
22 legend”), to each page that contains protected material. If only a portion or portions of the
23 material on a page qualifies for protection, the Producing Party also must clearly identify the
24 protected portion(s) (e.g., by making appropriate markings in the margins).
25 A Party or Non-Party that makes original documents available for inspection need not
26 designate them for protection until after the inspecting Party has indicated which documents it
27 would like copied and produced. During the inspection and before the designation, all of the
1 Party has identified the documents it wants copied and produced, the Producing Party must
2 determine which documents, or portions thereof, qualify for protection under this Protective
3 Order. Then, before producing the specified documents, the Producing Party must affix the
4 “CONFIDENTIAL legend” to each page that contains Protected Material. If only a portion or
5 portions of the material on a page qualifies for protection, the Producing Party also must clearly
6 identify the protected portion(s) (e.g., by making appropriate markings in the margins).
7 (b) For testimony given in depositions that the Designating Party identify the
8 Disclosure or Discovery Material on the record, before the close of the deposition.
9 (c) For information produced in some form other than documentary and for any other
10 tangible items, that the Producing Party affix in a prominent place on the exterior of the
11 container or containers in which the information is stored the legend “CONFIDENTIAL.” If only
12 a portion or portions of the information warrants protection, the Producing Party, to the extent
13 practicable, shall identify the protected portion(s).
14 4.3 Inadvertent Failures to Designate.
15 If timely corrected, an inadvertent failure to designate qualified information or items does
16 not, standing alone, waive the Designating Party’s right to secure protection under this Protective
17 Order for such material. Upon timely correction of a designation, the Receiving Party must make
18 reasonable efforts to assure that the material is treated in accordance with the provisions of this
19 Protective Order.
20 5. CHALLENGING CONFIDENTIALITY DESIGNATIONS
21 5.1 Timing of Challenges.
22 Any Party or Non-Party may challenge a designation of confidentiality at any time that is
23 consistent with the Court’s Scheduling Order and associated deadlines.
24 5.2 Meet and Confer.
25 The Challenging Party shall initiate the dispute resolution process under Local Rule 251,
26 et. seq.
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1 5.3 The Burden of Persuasion.
2 In any such challenge proceeding, the burden of persuasion shall be on the Designating
3 Party. Frivolous challenges, and those made for an improper purpose (e.g., to harass or impose
4 unnecessary expenses and burdens on other Parties) may expose the Challenging Party to
5 sanctions. Unless the Designating Party has waived or withdrawn the confidentiality designation,
6 all Parties shall continue to afford the material in question the level of protection to which it is
7 entitled under the Producing Party’s designation until the Court rules on the challenge.
8 6. ACCESS TO AND USE OF PROTECTED MATERIAL
9 6.1 Basic Principles.
10 A Receiving Party may use Protected Material that is disclosed or produced by another
11 Party or by a Non-Party in connection with this Action only for prosecuting, defending, or
12 attempting to settle this Action. Such Protected Material may be disclosed only to the categories
13 of persons and under the conditions described in this Protective Order. When the Action has been
14 terminated, a Receiving Party must comply with the provisions of section 12 below (Final
15 Disposition).
16 Protected Material must be stored and maintained by a Receiving Party at a location and
17 in a secure manner that ensures that access is limited to the persons authorized under this
18 Protective Order.
19 6.2 Disclosure of “CONFIDENTIAL” Information or Items. Unless otherwise
20 ordered by the Court or permitted in writing by the Designating Party, a Receiving Party may
21 disclose any information or item designated “CONFIDENTIAL” only to:
22 (a) The Receiving Party’s Outside Counsel of Record in this Action, as well as
23 employees of said Outside Counsel of Record to whom it is reasonably necessary to disclose the
24 information for this Action;
25 (b) The officers, directors, and employees (including House Counsel) of the
26 Receiving Party to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary for this Action;
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1 (c) Experts of the Receiving Party to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary for
2 this Action and who have signed the “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound” (Exhibit
3 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 to
7 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 custodian
10 or other person who otherwise possessed or knew the information;
11 (h) In preparation for and during their depositions, witnesses, and attorneys for
12 witnesses, in the Action to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary provided: (1) the deposing
13 Party requests that the witness sign the form attached as Exhibit A hereto; and (2) they will not
14 be permitted to keep any confidential information unless they sign the “Acknowledgment and
15 Agreement to Be Bound” (Exhibit A), unless otherwise agreed by the Designating Party or
16 ordered by the Court. Pages of transcribed deposition testimony or exhibits to depositions that
17 reveal Protected Material may be separately bound by the court reporter and may not be
18 disclosed to anyone except as permitted under this Protective Order; and
19 (i) Any mediator or settlement officer, and their supporting personnel, mutually
20 agreed upon by any of the parties engaged in settlement discussions.
21 Notwithstanding the aforementioned specified categories of persons and circumstances,
22 all documents designated CONFIDENTIAL and their contents, including and especially, but not
23 limited to, documents and depositions under seal containing the identities of witnesses,
24 employees/personnel and consultants shall expressly be deemed “Attorneys Eyes Only,”
25 meaning its disclosure shall be limited only to counsel for the Parties in addition to the
26 aforementioned specified categories of persons and circumstances. However, documents that do
27 not contain the identities of percipient witnesses shall not be deemed “Attorneys Eyes Only.”
1 7. PROTECTED MATERIAL SUBPOENAED OR ORDERED PRODUCED IN
2 OTHER LITIGATION
3 If a Party is served with a subpoena or a court order issued in other litigation that compels
4 disclosure of any information or items designated in this Action as “CONFIDENTIAL,” that
5 Party must:
6 (a) Promptly notify in writing the Designating Party. Such notification shall include a
7 copy of the subpoena or court order;
8 (b) Promptly notify in writing the Party who caused the subpoena or court order to
9 issue in the other litigation that some or all of the material covered by the subpoena or court
10 order is subject to this Protective Order. Such notification shall include a copy of this Protective
11 Order; and
12 (c) Cooperate with respect to all reasonable procedures sought to be pursued by the
13 Designating Party whose Protected Material may be affected.
14 If the Designating Party timely seeks a protective order, the Party served with the
15 subpoena or court order shall not produce any information designated in this Action as
16 “CONFIDENTIAL” before a determination by the court from which the subpoena or court order
17 issued, unless the Party has obtained the Designating Party’s permission. The Designating Party
18 shall bear the burden and expense of seeking protection in that court of its confidential material
19 and nothing in these provisions should be construed as authorizing or encouraging a Receiving
20 Party in this Action to disobey a lawful directive from another court.
21 8. A NON-PARTY’S PROTECTED MATERIAL SOUGHT TO BE PRODUCED IN
22 THIS LITIGATION
23 (a) The terms of this Protective Order are applicable to information produced by a
24 Non-Party in this Action and designated as “CONFIDENTIAL.” Such information produced by
25 Non-Parties in connection with this litigation is protected by the remedies and relief provided by
26 this Protective Order. Nothing in these provisions should be construed as prohibiting a Non-Party
27 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 agreement
3 with the Non-Party not to produce the Non-Party’s confidential information, then the Party shall:
4 (1) Promptly notify in writing the Requesting Party and the Non-Party that
5 some or all of the information requested is subject to a confidentiality agreement with a Non-
6 Party;
7 (2) Promptly provide the Non-Party with a copy of this Protective Order in
8 this Action, the relevant discovery request(s), and a reasonably specific description of the
9 information requested; and
10 (3) Make the information requested available for inspection by the Non-Party,
11 if requested.
12 (c) If the Non-Party fails to seek a protective order from this Court within 14 days of
13 receiving the notice and accompanying information, the Receiving Party may produce the Non-
14 Party’s confidential information responsive to the discovery request. If the Non-Party timely
15 seeks a protective order, the Receiving Party shall not produce any information in its possession
16 or control that is subject to the confidentiality agreement with the Non-Party before a
17 determination by the Court. Absent a court order to the contrary, the Non-Party shall bear the
18 burden and expense of seeking protection in this Court of its Protected Material.
19 9. UNAUTHORIZED DISCLOSURE OF PROTECTED MATERIAL
20 If a Receiving Party learns that, by inadvertence or otherwise, it has disclosed Protected
21 Material to any person or in any circumstance not authorized under this Protective Order, the
22 Receiving Party must immediately: (a) notify in writing the Designating Party of the
23 unauthorized disclosures; (b) use its best efforts to retrieve all unauthorized copies of the
24 Protected Material; (c) inform the person or persons to whom unauthorized disclosures were
25 made of all the terms of this Protective Order; and (d) request such person or persons to execute
26 the “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound” that is attached hereto as Exhibit A.
27 10. INADVERTENT PRODUCTION OF PRIVILEGED OR OTHERWISE
1 When a Producing Party gives notice to Receiving Parties that certain inadvertently
2 produced material is subject to a claim of privilege or other protection, the obligations of the
3 Receiving Parties are those set forth in Rule 26(b)(5)(B) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.
4 This provision is not intended to modify whatever procedure may be established in an e-
5 discovery order that provides for production without prior privilege review. Pursuant to Rules
6 502(d) and (e) of the Federal Rules of Evidence, insofar as the parties reach an agreement on the
7 effect of disclosure of a communication or information covered by the attorney-client privilege
8 or work product protection, the parties may incorporate their agreement in this Protective Order
9 submitted to the court.
10 11. MISCELLANEOUS
11 11.1 Right to Further Relief.
12 Nothing in this Protective Order abridges the right of any person to seek its modification
13 by the Court in the future.
14 11.2 Right to Assert Other Objections.
15 By stipulating to the entry of this Protective Order no Party waives any right it otherwise
16 would have to object to disclosing or producing any information or item on any ground not
17 addressed in this Protective Order. Similarly, no Party waives any right to object on any ground
18 to use in evidence of any of the material covered by this Protective Order.
19 11.3 Filing Protected Material.
20 A Party that seeks to file under seal any Protected Material must comply with Local Rule
21 141. Protected Material may only be filed under seal pursuant to a court order authorizing the
22 sealing of the specific Protected Material at issue. If a Party’s request to file Protected Material
23 under seal is denied by the Court, then the Receiving Party may file the information in the public
24 record unless otherwise instructed by the Court.
25 12. FINAL DISPOSITION
26 After the final disposition of this Action, as defined above, within 60 days of a written
27 request by the Designating Party, each Receiving Party must return all Protected Material to the
1 includes all copies, abstracts, compilations, summaries, and any other format reproducing or
2 capturing any of the Protected Material. Whether the Protected Material is returned or destroyed,
3 the Receiving Party must submit a written certification to the Producing Party (and, if not the
4 same person or entity, to the Designating Party) by the 60-day deadline that (a) identifies (by
5 category, where appropriate) all the Protected Material that was returned or destroyed; and (b)
6 affirms that the Receiving Party has not retained any copies, abstracts, compilations, summaries
7 or any other format reproducing or capturing any of the Protected Material. Notwithstanding this
8 provision, counsel are entitled to retain an archival copy of all pleadings, motion papers, trial,
9 deposition, and hearing transcripts, legal memoranda, correspondence, deposition and trial
10 exhibits, expert reports, attorney work product, and consultant and expert work product, even if
11 such materials contain Protected Material. Any such archival copies that contain or constitute
12 Protected Material remain subject to this Protective Order as set forth in Section 3
13 (DURATION).
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1 EXHIBIT A
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ACKNOWLEDGMENT AND AGREEMENT TO BE BOUND
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I, _________________________________________________ [print or type full name], of
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_____________________________________________________________ [print or type full
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address], declare under penalty of perjury that I have read in its entirety and understand the
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Stipulated Protective Order that was issued by the United States District Court for the Eastern
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District of California on [Date:___________] in the case of Jason Lawrence Shepard v. City of
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Fresno, et. al.; 1:25-cv-00822-JLT-SAB. I agree to comply with and to be bound by all the
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terms of this Stipulated Protective Order and I understand and acknowledge that failure to so
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comply could expose me to sanctions and punishment in the nature of contempt. I solemnly
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promise that I will not disclose in any manner any information or item that is subject to this
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Stipulated Protective Order to any person or entity except in strict compliance with the
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provisions of this Stipulated Protective Order. I further agree to submit to the jurisdiction of the
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United States District Court for the Eastern District of California for the purpose of enforcing the
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terms of this Stipulated Protective Order, even if such enforcement proceedings occur after
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termination of this Action. I hereby appoint ________________________________ [print or
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type full name] of ___________________________________________ [print or type full
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address and telephone number] as my California agent for service of process in connection with
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this Action or any proceedings related to enforcement of this Stipulated Protective Order.
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Date: ________________________________________________________
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City/State where sworn and signed: ________________________________
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Printed name: _________________________________________________
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Signature: ____________________________________________________
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1 COURT ORDER ENTERING STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER
2 Pursuant to the stipulation of the parties and good cause appearing, IT IS HEREBY
3 | ORDERED that:
4 1. The above stipulated protective order is ENTERED;
5 2. The provisions of the parties’ stipulation and this protective order shall remain in
6 effect until further order of the Court;
7 3. The parties are advised that pursuant to the Local Rules of the United States
8 District Court, Eastern District of California, any documents which are to be filed
9 under seal will require a written request which complies with Local Rule 141;
10 4. The party making a request to file documents under seal shall be required to show
11 either good cause or compelling reasons to seal the documents, depending on the
12 type of filing, Pintos v. Pac. Creditors Ass’n, 605 F.3d 665, 677-78 (9th Cir.
13 2009); Ctr. for Auto Safety v. Chrysler Grp., LLC, 809 F.3d 1092, 1101 (9th Cir.
14 2016);
15 5. If a party’s request to file Protected Material under seal is denied by the Court,
16 then the previously filed material shall be immediately accepted by the Court and
17 become information in the public record and the information will be deemed filed
18 as of the date that the request to file the Protected Information under seal was
19 made; and
20 6. Additionally, the parties shall consider resolving any dispute arising under this
21 protective order according to the Court’s informal discovery dispute procedure.
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73 IT IS SO ORDERED. DAA Le
24 | Dated: _ April 21, 2026 _ eee
STANLEY A. BOONE
25 United States Magistrate Judge
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