The opinion
1 JASON D. RUSSELL (SBN 169219)
jason.russell@davispolk.com
2 HILLARY A. HAMILTON (SBN 218233)
hillary.hamilton@davispolk.com
3 DAVIS POLK & WARDWELL LLP
900 Middlefield Road, Suite 200
4 Redwood City, CA 94063
Telephone: (650) 752-2000
5
Attorneys For Specially Appearing
6 Defendant Fenix International Limited
7 CARTER E. GREENBAUM (SBN 344692)
carter@greenbaumolbrantz.com
8 GREENBAUM OLBRANTZ LLP
160 Newport Center Drive, Suite 110
9 Newport Beach, CA 92660
Telephone: (332) 222-9119
10
CASEY OLBRANTZ (pro hac vice forthcoming)
11 casey@greenbaumolbrantz.com
GIORGIO TRAINI (pro hac vice forthcoming)
12 giorgio@greenbaumolbrantz.com
GREENBAUM OLBRANTZ LLP
13 244 Fifth Avenue, Suite C221
New York, NY 10001
14
Attorneys for Plaintiff
15
16 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
17 CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
18 WESTERN DIVISION
19 DAVID GARDNER, individually and on Case No.: 2:26-cv-00762-FLA-SSC
behalf of all others similarly situated,
20
Plaintiff, Assigned to Hon. Fernando L. Aenlle-
21 Rocha
v.
22 [DISCOVERY MATTER: Referred
FENIX INTERNATIONAL LTD. (d/b/a to Magistrate Hon. Stephanie S.
23 ONLY FANS), Christensen]
24
[PROPOSED] STIPULATED
25 Defendant. PROTECTIVE ORDER
26
27
1 1. INTRODUCTION
2 1.1 Purposes and Limitations. Discovery in this action is likely to involve
3 production of confidential, proprietary, or private information for which special
4 protection from public disclosure and from use for any purpose other than prosecuting
5 this litigation may be warranted. Accordingly, the parties hereby stipulate to and
6 petition the court to enter the following Stipulated Protective Order.1 The parties
7 acknowledge that this Order does not confer blanket protections on all disclosures or
8 responses to discovery and that the protection it affords from public disclosure and use
9 extends only to the limited information or items that are entitled to confidential
10 treatment under the applicable legal principles.
11 1.2 Good Cause Statement.
12 This action is likely to involve trade secrets, commercial, financial, technical
13 and/or proprietary information for which special protection from public disclosure and
14 from use for any purpose other than prosecution of this action is warranted. Such
15 confidential and proprietary materials and information consist of, among other things,
16 confidential business or financial information, information regarding confidential
17 business practices, or other confidential research, development, or commercial
18 information (including information implicating privacy rights of third parties),
19 information otherwise generally unavailable to the public, or which may be privileged
20 or otherwise protected from disclosure under state or federal statutes, court rules, case
21 decisions, or common law—the disclosure of which could materially affect the parties’
22 business, financial, or commercial interests. Accordingly, to expedite the flow of
23 information, to facilitate the prompt resolution of disputes over confidentiality of
24 discovery materials, to adequately protect information the parties are entitled to keep
25
26 1 This Stipulated Protective Order is substantially based on the model protective order
27 provided under Magistrate Judge Stephanie S. Christensen’s Procedures as of 24 July
2023.
1 confidential, to ensure that the parties are permitted reasonable necessary uses of such
2 material in preparation for and in the conduct of trial, to address their handling at the
3 end of the litigation, and serve the ends of justice, a protective order for such
4 information is justified in this matter. It is the intent of the parties that information
5 will not be designated as confidential for tactical reasons and that nothing be so
6 designated without a good faith belief that it has been maintained in a confidential,
7 non-public manner, and there is good cause why it should not be part of the public
8 record of this case.
9 1.3 Acknowledgment of Procedure for Filing Under Seal. The parties further
10 acknowledge, as set forth in Section 12.3, below, that this Stipulated Protective Order
11 does not entitle them to file confidential information under seal; Local Rule 79-5 sets
12 forth the procedures that must be followed and the standards that will be applied when
13 a party seeks permission from the court to file material under seal.
14 There is a strong presumption that the public has a right of access to judicial
15 proceedings and records in civil cases. In connection with non-dispositive motions,
16 good cause must be shown to support a filing under seal. See Kamakana v. City and
17 Cnty. of Honolulu, 447 F.3d 1172, 1176 (9th Cir. 2006), Phillips ex rel. Ests. of Byrd
18 v. Gen. Motors Corp., 307 F.3d 1206, 1210–11 (9th Cir. 2002), Makar-Welbon v.
19 Sony Elecs., Inc., 187 F.R.D. 576, 577 (E.D. Wis. 1999) (even stipulated protective
20 orders require good cause showing), and a specific showing of good cause or
21 compelling reasons with proper evidentiary support and legal justification, must be
22 made with respect to Protected Material that a party seeks to file under seal. The
23 parties’ mere designation of Disclosure or Discovery Material as CONFIDENTIAL
24 does not—without the submission of competent evidence by declaration, establishing
25 that the material sought to be filed under seal qualifies as confidential, privileged, or
26 otherwise protectable—constitute good cause.
27 Further, if a party requests sealing related to a dispositive motion or trial, then
1 sought shall be narrowly tailored to serve the specific interest to be protected. See
2 Pintos v. Pac. Creditors Ass’n, 605 F.3d 665, 677–79 (9th Cir. 2010). For each item
3 or type of information, document, or thing sought to be filed or introduced under seal
4 in connection with a dispositive motion or trial, the party seeking protection must
5 articulate compelling reasons, supported by specific facts and legal justification, for
6 the requested sealing order. Again, competent evidence supporting the application to
7 file documents under seal must be provided by declaration.
8 Any document that is not confidential, privileged, or otherwise protectable in
9 its entirety will not be filed under seal if the confidential portions can be redacted. If
10 documents can be redacted, then a redacted version for public viewing, omitting only
11 the confidential, privileged, or otherwise protectable portions of the document, shall
12 be filed. Any application that seeks to file documents under seal in their entirety
13 should include an explanation of why redaction is not feasible.
14 2. DEFINITIONS
15 2.1 Action: Gardner v. Fenix Int’l Ltd., d/b/a OnlyFans, Case No.: 2:26-cv-
16 00762-FLA-SSC.
17 2.2 Challenging Party: a Party or Non-Party that challenges the designation
18 of information or items as CONFIDENTIAL under this Order.
19 2.3 “CONFIDENTIAL” Information or Items: information (regardless of
20 how it is generated, stored or maintained) or tangible things that qualify for protection
21 under Rule 26(c) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, and as specified above in the
22 Good Cause Statement.
23 2.4 Counsel: Outside Counsel of Record and In-House Counsel (as well as
24 their support staff).
25 2.5 Designating Party: a Party or Non-Party that designates information or
26 items that it produces in disclosures or in responses to discovery as
27 “CONFIDENTIAL.”
1 the medium or manner in which it is generated, stored, or maintained (including,
2 among other things, testimony, transcripts, and tangible things), that are produced or
3 generated in disclosures or responses to discovery in this matter.
4 2.7 Expert: a person with specialized knowledge or experience in a matter
5 pertinent to the litigation who has been retained by a Party or its counsel to serve as an
6 expert witness or as a consultant in this Action.
7 2.8 Final Disposition: the later of (1) dismissal of all claims and defenses in
8 this Action, with or without prejudice; and (2) final judgment herein after the
9 completion and exhaustion of all appeals, rehearings, remands, trials, or reviews of this
10 Action, including the time limits for filing any motions or applications for extension
11 of time pursuant to applicable law.
12 2.9 In-House Counsel: attorneys who are employees of a party to this Action.
13 In-House Counsel does not include Outside Counsel of Record or any other outside
14 counsel.
15 2.10 Non-Party: any natural person, partnership, corporation, association, or
16 other legal entity not named as a Party to this action.
17 2.11 Outside Counsel of Record: attorneys who are not employees of a party
18 to this Action but are retained to represent or advise a party to this Action and have
19 appeared in this Action on behalf of that party or are affiliated with a law firm which
20 has appeared on behalf of that party, and includes support staff.
21 2.12 Party: any party to this Action, including all of its officers, directors,
22 employees, consultants, retained experts, In-House Counsel, and Outside Counsel of
23 Record (and their support staffs).
24 2.13 Producing Party: a Party or Non-Party that produces Disclosure or
25 Discovery Material in this Action.
26 2.14 Professional Vendors: persons or entities that provide litigation- support
27 services (e.g., photocopying, videotaping, translating, preparing exhibits or
1 their employees and subcontractors.
2 2.15 Protected Material: any Disclosure or Discovery Material that is
3 designated as “CONFIDENTIAL.”
4 2.16 Receiving Party: a Party that receives Disclosure or Discovery Material
5 from a Producing Party.
6 3. SCOPE
7 The protections conferred by this Stipulation and Order cover not only
8 Protected Material (as defined above), but also (1) any information copied or
9 extracted from Protected Material; (2) all copies, excerpts, summaries, or
10 compilations of Protected Material; and (3) any testimony, conversations, or
11 presentations by Parties or their Counsel that might reveal Protected Material.
12 Any use of Protected Material at trial shall be governed by the orders of the
13 trial judge. This Stipulated Protective Order does not govern the use of Protected
14 Material at trial.
15 4. TRIAL AND DURATION
16 The terms of this Stipulated Protective Order apply through Final Disposition
17 of the Action.
18 Once a case proceeds to trial, information that was designated as
19 CONFIDENTIAL or maintained pursuant to this Stipulated Protective Order and used
20 or introduced as an exhibit at trial becomes public and will be presumptively available
21 to all members of the public, including the press, unless compelling reasons supported
22 by specific factual findings to proceed otherwise are made to the trial judge in advance
23 of the trial. See Kamakana, 447 F.3d at 1180–81 (distinguishing “good cause”
24 showing for sealing documents produced in discovery from “compelling reasons”
25 standard when merits-related documents are part of court record). Accordingly, for
26 such materials, the terms of this Stipulated Protective Order do not extend beyond the
27 commencement of the trial.
1 imposed by this Stipulated Protective Order shall remain in effect until a Designating
2 Party agrees otherwise in writing or a court order otherwise directs.
3 5. DESIGNATING PROTECTED MATERIAL
4 5.1 Exercise of Restraint and Care in Designating Material for Protection.
5 Each Party or Non-Party that designates information or items for protection under this
6 Order must take care to limit any such designation to specific material that qualifies
7 under the appropriate standards. The Designating Party must designate for protection
8 only those parts of material, documents, items, or oral or written communications that
9 qualify so that other portions of the material, documents, items, or communications
10 for which protection is not warranted are not swept unjustifiably within the ambit of
11 this Order.
12 Mass, indiscriminate, or routinized designations are prohibited. Designations
13 that are shown to be clearly unjustified or that have been made for an improper
14 purpose (e.g., to unnecessarily encumber the case development process or to impose
15 unnecessary expenses and burdens on other parties) may expose the Designating
16 Party to sanctions.
17 If it comes to a Designating Party’s attention that information or items that it
18 designated for protection do not qualify for protection, that Designating Party must
19 promptly notify all other Parties that it is withdrawing the inapplicable designation.
20 5.2 Manner and Timing of Designations. Except as otherwise provided in
21 this Stipulated Protective Order (see, e.g., second paragraph of section 5.2(a) below),
22 or as otherwise stipulated or ordered, Disclosure or Discovery Material that qualifies
23 for protection under this Stipulated Protective Order must be clearly so designated
24 before the material is disclosed or produced.
25 Designation in conformity with this Stipulated Protective Order requires:
26 (a) for information in documentary form (e.g., paper or electronic
27 documents, but excluding transcripts of depositions or other pretrial or trial
1 “CONFIDENTIAL” to each page that contains protected material. If only a portion
2 or portions of the material on a page qualifies for protection, the Producing Party also
3 must clearly identify the protected portion(s) (e.g., by making appropriate markings
4 in the margins).
5 A Party or Non-Party that makes original documents available for inspection
6 need not designate them for protection until after the inspecting Party has indicated
7 which documents it would like copied and produced. During the inspection and
8 before the designation, all of the material made available for inspection shall be
9 deemed CONFIDENTIAL. After the inspecting Party has identified the documents
10 it wants copied and produced, the Producing Party must determine which documents,
11 or portions thereof, qualify for protection under this Stipulated Protective Order.
12 Then, before producing the specified documents, the Producing Party must affix the
13 “CONFIDENTIAL” legend to each page that contains Protected Material. If only a
14 portion or portions of the material on a page qualifies for protection, the Producing
15 Party also must clearly identify the protected portion(s) (e.g., by making appropriate
16 markings in the margins).
17 (b) for testimony given in depositions that the Designating Party identify the
18 Disclosure or Discovery Material on the record, before the close of the deposition all
19 protected testimony.
20 (c) for information produced in some form other than documentary and for
21 any other tangible items, that the Producing Party affix in a prominent place on the
22 exterior of the container or containers in which the information is stored the
23 “CONFIDENTIAL” legend. If only a portion or portions of the information warrants
24 protection, the Producing Party, to the extent practicable, shall identify the protected
25 portion(s).
26 5.3 Inadvertent Failures to Designate. If timely corrected, an inadvertent
27 failure to designate qualified information or items does not, standing alone, waive the
1 timely correction of a designation, the Receiving Party must make reasonable efforts
2 to assure that the material is treated in accordance with the provisions of this Stipulated
3 Protective Order.
4 6. CHALLENGING CONFIDENTIALITY DESIGNATIONS
5 6.1 Timing of Challenges. Any Party or Non-Party may challenge a
6 designation of confidentiality at any time that is consistent with the court’s Scheduling
7 Order.
8 6.2 Meet and Confer. The Challenging Party shall initiate the dispute
9 resolution process under Local Rule 37.1 et seq. and with Section 2 of Judge
10 Christensen’s Civil Procedures titled “Brief Pre-Discovery Motion Conference.”2
11 6.3 The burden of persuasion in any such challenge proceeding shall be on
12 the Designating Party. Frivolous challenges, and those made for an improper purpose
13 (e.g., to harass or impose unnecessary expenses and burdens on other parties) may
14 expose the Challenging Party to sanctions. Unless the Designating Party has waived
15 or withdrawn the confidentiality designation, all parties shall continue to afford the
16 material in question the level of protection to which it is entitled under the Producing
17 Party’s designation until the court rules on the challenge.
18 7. ACCESS TO AND USE OF PROTECTED MATERIAL
19 7.1 Basic Principles. A Receiving Party may use Protected Material that is
20 disclosed or produced by another Party or by a Non-Party in connection with this
21 Action only for prosecuting, defending, or attempting to settle this Action. Such
22 Protected Material may be disclosed only to the categories of persons and under the
23 conditions described in this Order. When the Action reaches a Final Disposition, a
24 Receiving Party must comply with the provisions of section 13 below.
25
26
27 2 Judge Christensen’s Procedures are available at
https://www.cacd.uscourts.gov/honorable-stephanie-s-christensen.
1 Protected Material must be stored and maintained by a Receiving Party at a
2 location and in a secure manner that ensures that access is limited to the persons
3 authorized under this Stipulated Protective Order.
4 7.2 Disclosure of “CONFIDENTIAL” Information or Items. Unless
5 otherwise ordered by the court or permitted in writing by the Designating Party, a
6 Receiving Party may disclose any information or item designated
7 “CONFIDENTIAL” only:
8 (a) to the Receiving Party’s Outside Counsel of Record in this Action, as
9 well as employees of said Outside Counsel of Record to whom it is reasonably
10 necessary to disclose the information for this Action;
11 (b) to the officers, directors, and employees (including In-House Counsel)
12 of the Receiving Party to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary for this Action;
13 (c) to Experts (as defined in this Order) of the Receiving Party to whom
14 disclosure is reasonably necessary for this Action and who have signed the
15 “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound” (Exhibit A);
16 (d) to the court and its personnel;
17 (e) to court reporters and their staff;
18 (f) to professional jury or trial consultants, mock jurors, and Professional
19 Vendors to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary for this Action and who have
20 signed the “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound” (Exhibit A);
21 (g) to the author or recipient of a document containing the information or a
22 custodian or other person who otherwise possessed or knew the information;
23 (h) during their depositions, to witnesses, and attorneys for witnesses, in the
24 Action to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary, provided: (1) the deposing party
25 requests that the witness sign the “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound”
26 (Exhibit A); and (2) the witness will not be permitted to keep any confidential
27 information unless they sign the “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound”
1 Pages of transcribed deposition testimony or exhibits to depositions that reveal
2 Protected Material may be separately bound by the court reporter and may not be
3 disclosed to anyone except as permitted under this Stipulated Protective Order; and
4 (i) to any mediator or settlement officer, and their supporting personnel,
5 mutually agreed upon by any of the parties engaged in settlement discussions.
6 8. PROTECTED MATERIAL SUBPOENAED OR ORDERED
7 PRODUCED IN OTHER LITIGATION
8 If a Party is served with a subpoena or a court order issued in other litigation
9 that compels disclosure of any information or items designated in this Action as
10 “CONFIDENTIAL,” that Party must:
11 (a) within five business days of receipt of the subpoena or court order, notify
12 in writing the Designating Party. Such notification shall include a copy of the
13 subpoena or court order;
14 (b) promptly notify in writing the party who caused the subpoena or order to
15 issue in the other litigation that some or all of the material covered by the subpoena
16 or order is subject to this Protective Order. Such notification shall include a copy of
17 this Stipulated Protective Order; and
18 (c) cooperate with respect to all reasonable procedures sought to be pursued
19 by the Designating Party whose Protected Material may be affected.
20 If the Designating Party timely seeks a protective order, the Party served
21 with the subpoena or court order shall not produce any information designated in this
22 action as “CONFIDENTIAL” before a determination by the court from which the
23 subpoena or order issued, unless the Party has obtained the Designating Party’s
24 permission. The Designating Party shall bear the burden and expense of seeking
25 protection in that court of its confidential material and nothing in these provisions
26 should be construed as authorizing or encouraging a Receiving Party in this Action to
27 disobey a lawful directive from another court.
1 9. A NON-PARTY’S PROTECTED MATERIAL SOUGHT TO BE
2 PRODUCED IN THIS LITIGATION
3 9.1 Application. The terms of this Stipulated Protective Order are applicable
4 to information produced by a Non-Party in this Action and designated as
5 “CONFIDENTIAL.” Such information produced by Non-Parties in connection with
6 this litigation is protected by the remedies and relief provided by this Order. Nothing
7 in these provisions should be construed as prohibiting a Non-Party from seeking
8 additional protections.
9 9.2 Notification. In the event that a Party is required, by a valid discovery
10 request, to produce a Non-Party’s confidential information in its possession, and the
11 Party is subject to an agreement with the Non-Party not to produce the Non-Party’s
12 confidential information, then the Party shall:
13 (a) promptly notify in writing the Requesting Party and the Non-Party that
14 some or all of the information requested is subject to a confidentiality agreement with
15 a Non-Party;
16 (b) make the information requested available for inspection by the Non-
17 Party, if requested.
18 9.3 Conditions of Production. If the Non-Party fails to seek a protective order
19 from this court within 14 days of receiving the notice and accompanying information,
20 the Receiving Party may produce the Non-Party’s confidential information responsive
21 to the discovery request. If the Non-Party timely seeks a protective order, the
22 Receiving Party shall not produce any information in its possession or control that is
23 subject to the confidentiality agreement with the Non-Party before a determination by
24 the court. Absent a court order to the contrary, the Non-Party shall bear the burden
25 and expense of seeking protection in this court of its Protected Material.
26 10. UNAUTHORIZED DISCLOSURE OF PROTECTED MATERIAL
27 If a Receiving Party learns that, by inadvertence or otherwise, it has disclosed
1 Stipulated Protective Order, the Receiving Party must immediately (a) notify in
2 writing the Designating Party of the unauthorized disclosures, (b) use its best efforts
3 to retrieve all unauthorized copies of the Protected Material and ensure the
4 unauthorized copies are not further distributed, (c) inform the person or persons to
5 whom unauthorized disclosures were made of all the terms of this Order, and (d)
6 request such person or persons to execute the “Acknowledgment and Agreement to
7 Be Bound” (Exhibit A).
8 11. INADVERTENT PRODUCTION OF PRIVILEGED OR OTHERWISE
9 PROTECTED MATERIAL
10 When a Producing Party gives notice to Receiving Parties that certain
11 inadvertently produced material is subject to a claim of privilege or other protection,
12 the obligations of the Receiving Parties are those set forth in Rule 26(b)(5)(B) of the
13 Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. This provision is not intended to modify whatever
14 procedure may be established in an e-discovery order that provides for production
15 without prior privilege review. Pursuant to Rules 502(d) and (e) of the Federal Rules
16 of Evidence, insofar as the parties reach an agreement on the effect of disclosure of a
17 communication or information covered by the attorney-client privilege or work
18 product protection, the parties may incorporate their agreement in the stipulated
19 protective order submitted to the court.
20 12. MISCELLANEOUS
21 12.1 Right to Further Relief. Nothing in this Stipulated Protective Order
22 abridges the right of any person to seek its modification by the court in the future.
23 12.2 Right to Assert Other Objections. By stipulating to the entry of this
24 Stipulated Protective Order no Party waives any right it otherwise would have to
25 object to disclosing or producing any information or item on any ground not addressed
26 in this Stipulated Protective Order. Similarly, no Party waives any right to object on
27 any ground to use in evidence of any of the material covered by this Stipulated
1 12.3 Filing Protected Material. A Party that seeks to file under seal any
2 Protected Material must comply with Local Rule 79-5. Protected Material may only
3 be filed under seal pursuant to a court order authorizing the sealing of the specific
4 Protected Material at issue. If a Party’s request to file Protected Material under seal
5 is denied by the court, then the Receiving Party may file the information in the public
6 record unless otherwise instructed by the court.
7 13. FINAL DISPOSITION
8 After the Final Disposition of this Action, as defined in paragraph 4, within 60
9 days of a written request by the Designating Party, each Receiving Party must return
10 all Protected Material to the Producing Party or destroy such material. As used in this
11 subdivision, “all Protected Material” includes all copies, abstracts, compilations,
12 summaries, and any other format reproducing or capturing any of the Protected
13 Material. Whether the Protected Material is returned or destroyed, the Receiving
14 Party must submit a written certification to the Producing Party (and, if not the same
15 person or entity, to the Designating Party) by the 60 day deadline that (1) identifies
16 (by category, where appropriate) all the Protected Material that was returned or
17 destroyed and (2) affirms that the Receiving Party has not retained any copies,
18 abstracts, compilations, summaries or any other format reproducing or capturing any
19 of the Protected Material. Notwithstanding this provision, Counsel is entitled to retain
20 an archival copy of all pleadings, motion papers, trial, deposition, and hearing
21 transcripts, legal memoranda, correspondence, deposition and trial exhibits, expert
22 reports, attorney work product, and consultant and expert work product, even if such
23 materials contain Protected Material. Any such archival copies that contain or
24 constitute Protected Material remain subject to this Protective Order as set forth in
25 Section 4.
26
27
114. VIOLATION
2 Any violation of this Stipulated Protective Order may be punished by any and
3 || all appropriate measures including, without limitation, contempt proceedings and/or
4 || monetary sanctions.
5
6 IT IS SO STIPULATED, THROUGH COUNSEL OF RECORD.
7
|| DATED: June 3, 2026 DAVIS POLK & WARDWELL LLP
9
By: /s/ Jason D. Russel]
10
JASON D. RUSSELL
11
Attorneys for Specially Appearing Defendant
12 veer international Limited □
13 All other signatories listed, and on whose
behalf the ling is submitted, concur in the
14 filing’s content and have authorized the
filing.
15
16 GREENBAUM OLBRANTZ LLP
17
By: /s/ Casev Olbrantz
18 Casey Olbrantz
19 Attorneys for Plaintiff
20
21
22 FOR GOOD CAUSE SHOWN, IT IS SO ORDERED.
23
24|| DATED: hune 3, 2026 Zo
25 STEPHANIE S. CHRISTENSEN
26 United States Magistrate Judge
27
28