Opinion

Opinion

Court
District Court, C.D. California
Filed
Jul 7, 2026
Cited by
0 cases
Authority
More cited than 41.7%

The opinion

1

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

2

CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

3

4

VYACHESLAV FINOGEYEV, Case No. 2:26-cv-02999-WLH-

5

et. al., DMK

6 Plaintiff(s),

7 v.

STIPULATED PROTECTIVE

8 MERCEDES-BENZ FINANCIAL ORDER1

9 SERVICES USA, LLC et al.,

10 Defendant(s).

11

12

1. INTRODUCTION

13

1.1 Purposes and Limitations. Discovery in this action is likely to

14

involve production of confidential, proprietary, or private information for

15

which special protection from public disclosure and from use for any

16

purpose other than prosecuting this litigation may be warranted.

17

Accordingly, the parties hereby stipulate to and petition the court to

18

19 enter the following Stipulated Protective Order. The parties

20 acknowledge that this Order does not confer blanket protections on all

21 disclosures or responses to discovery and that the protection it affords

22 from public disclosure and use extends only to the limited information or

23 items that are entitled to confidential treatment under the applicable

24 legal principles.

25

26

27

1 This Stipulated Protective Order is substantially based on the model

protective order provided under Magistrate Judge Diana M. Kwok’s

1 1.2 Good Cause Statement. This action is likely to involve

2 documents related to an ongoing criminal investigation by Non-Party

3 State of California, acting by and through California Highway Patrol

4 (CHP), which contain information that is generally unavailable to the

5 public and/or privileged or otherwise protected from disclosure under

6 state or federal statues, court rules, case decisions, or common law. CHP

7 may also be producing documents that contain information concerning

8

its confidential internal policies which are generally unavailable to the

9

public. The disclosure of this information may jeopardize the security of

10

CHP’s operations and jeopardize the safety of peace officers. CHP may

11

also be producing documents that contain personal and confidential

12

information regarding individuals which information is generally

13

unavailable to the public, including peace officer personnel records and

14

records related to third parties. The disclosure of this information to the

15

public may violate those individuals’ privacy rights. CHP may also be

16

producing video, audio and still photo images related to the incident at

17

issue in this case, which are generally unavailable to the public. In

18

addition, CHP may be producing investigation reports which are

19

generally unavailable to the public, the disclosure of which could violate

20

individuals’ privacy rights, jeopardize the safety of officers, and

21

22 jeopardize the integrity of the ongoing criminal investigation.

23 Accordingly, to expedite the flow of information, to facilitate the prompt

24 resolution of disputes over confidentiality of discovery materials, to

25 adequately protect information the parties are entitled to keep

26 confidential, to ensure that the parties are permitted reasonable

27 necessary uses of such material in preparation for and in the conduct of

1 ends of justice, a protective order for such information is justified in this

2 matter. It is the intent of the parties that information will not be

3 designated as confidential for tactical reasons and that nothing be so

4 designated without a good faith belief that it has been maintained in a

5 confidential, non-public manner, and there is good cause why it should

6 not be part of the public record of this case. In addition, this Action may

7 involve the production of confidential, proprietary, or commercially

8

sensitive information by other Parties or Non-Parties, including any

9

Non-Party that may be subpoenaed in connection with this Action. Such

10

information may include, without limitation, proprietary commercial or

11

financial information and nonpublic customer or account data, the

12

disclosure of which could cause competitive or other injury. Accordingly,

13

and for the same reasons set forth above, good cause exists for this Order

14

to extend equally to such material upon proper designation in accordance

15

with the terms below.

16

1.3 Acknowledgment of Procedure for Filing Under Seal. The

17

parties further acknowledge, as set forth in Section 12.3, below, that this

18

Stipulated Protective Order does not entitle them to file confidential

19

information under seal; Local Rule 79-5 sets forth the procedures that

20

must be followed and the standards that will be applied when a party

21

22 seeks permission from the court to file material under seal.

23 There is a strong presumption that the public has a right of access

24 to judicial proceedings and records in civil cases. In connection with

25 non-dispositive motions, good cause must be shown to support a filing

26 under seal. See Kamakana v. City and Cnty. of Honolulu, 447 F.3d

27 1172, 1176 (9th Cir. 2006), Phillips ex rel. Ests. of Byrd v. Gen. Motors

1 Elecs., Inc., 187 F.R.D. 576, 577 (E.D. Wis. 1999) (even stipulated

2 protective orders require good cause showing), and a specific showing of

3 good cause or compelling reasons with proper evidentiary support and

4 legal justification, must be made with respect to Protected Material that

5 a party seeks to file under seal. The parties’ mere designation of

6 Disclosure or Discovery Material as CONFIDENTIAL does not—

7 without the submission of competent evidence by declaration,

8

establishing that the material sought to be filed under seal qualifies as

9

confidential, privileged, or otherwise protectable—constitute good cause.

10

Further, if a party requests sealing related to a dispositive motion

11

or trial, then compelling reasons, not only good cause, for the sealing

12

must be shown, and the relief sought shall be narrowly tailored to serve

13

the specific interest to be protected. See Pintos v. Pac. Creditors Ass’n,

14

605 F.3d 665, 677–79 (9th Cir. 2010). For each item or type of

15

information, document, or thing sought to be filed or introduced under

16

seal in connection with a dispositive motion or trial, the party seeking

17

protection must articulate compelling reasons, supported by specific

18

facts and legal justification, for the requested sealing order. Again,

19

competent evidence supporting the application to file documents under

20

seal must be provided by declaration.

21

22 Any document that is not confidential, privileged, or otherwise

23 protectable in its entirety will not be filed under seal if the confidential

24 portions can be redacted. If documents can be redacted, then a redacted

25 version for public viewing, omitting only the confidential, privileged, or

26 otherwise protectable portions of the document, shall be filed. Any

27 application that seeks to file documents under seal in their entirety

1

2 2. DEFINITIONS

3 2.1 Action: this pending federal lawsuit.

4

2.2 Challenging Party: a Party or Non-Party that challenges the

5

designation of information or items under this Order.

6

2.3 “CONFIDENTIAL” Information or Items: information

7

(regardless of how it is generated, stored or maintained) or tangible

8

things that qualify for protection under Rule 26(c) of the Federal Rules of

9

Civil Procedure, and as specified above in the Good Cause Statement.

10

2.4 Counsel: Outside Counsel of Record and In-House Counsel (as

11

well as their support staff).

12

2.5 Designating Party: a Party or Non-Party that designates

13

information or items that it produces in disclosures or in responses to

14

discovery as “CONFIDENTIAL.”

15

2.6 Disclosure or Discovery Material: all items or information,

16

regardless of the medium or manner in which it is generated, stored, or

17

18 maintained (including, among other things, testimony, transcripts, and

19 tangible things), that are produced or generated in disclosures or

20 responses to discovery in this matter.

21 2.7 Expert: a person with specialized knowledge or experience in

22 a matter pertinent to the litigation who has been retained by a Party or

23 its counsel to serve as an expert witness or as a consultant in this Action.

24 2.8 Final Disposition: the later of (1) dismissal of all claims and

25 defenses in this Action, with or without prejudice; and (2) final judgment

26 herein after the completion and exhaustion of all appeals, rehearings,

27

remands, trials, or reviews of this Action, including the time limits for

1 filing any motions or applications for extension of time pursuant to

2 applicable law.

3 2.9 In-House Counsel: attorneys who are employees of a party to

4 this Action. In-House Counsel does not include Outside Counsel of

5 Record or any other outside counsel.

6 2.10 Non-Party: any natural person, partnership, corporation,

7 association, or other legal entity not named as a Party to this action.

8

2.11 Outside Counsel of Record: attorneys who are not employees

9

of a party to this Action but are retained to represent or advise a party to

10

this Action and have appeared in this Action on behalf of that party or

11

are affiliated with a law firm which has appeared on behalf of that party,

12

and includes support staff.

13

2.12 Party: any party to this Action, including all of its officers,

14

directors, employees, consultants, retained experts, and Outside Counsel

15

of Record (and their support staffs).

16

2.13 Producing Party: a Party or Non-Party that produces

17

Disclosure or Discovery Material in this Action.

18

2.14 Professional Vendors: persons or entities that provide

19

litigation-support services (e.g., photocopying, videotaping, translating,

20

preparing exhibits or demonstrations, and organizing, storing, or

21

22 retrieving data in any form or medium) and their employees and

23 subcontractors.

24 2.15 Protected Material: any Disclosure or Discovery Material that

25 is designated as “CONFIDENTIAL.”

26 2.16 Receiving Party: a Party that receives Disclosure or Discovery

27 Material from a Producing Party.

1 3. SCOPE

2 The protections conferred by this Stipulation and Order cover not

3 only Protected Material (as defined above), but also (1) any information

4

copied or extracted from Protected Material; (2) all copies, excerpts,

5

summaries, or compilations of Protected Material; and (3) any

6

testimony, conversations, or presentations by Parties or their Counsel

7

that might reveal Protected Material.

8

//

9

Any use of Protected Material at trial shall be governed by the

10

orders of the trial judge. This Stipulated Protective Order does not

11

govern the use of Protected Material at trial.

12

13

14 4. TRIAL AND DURATION

15 The terms of this Stipulated Protective Order apply through Final

16 Disposition of the Action.

17

Once a case proceeds to trial, information that was designated as

18

CONFIDENTIAL or maintained pursuant to this Stipulated Protective

19

Order and used or introduced as an exhibit at trial becomes public and

20

will be presumptively available to all members of the public, including

21

the press, unless compelling reasons supported by specific factual

22

findings to proceed otherwise are made to the trial judge in advance of

23

the trial. See Kamakana, 447 F.3d at 1180–81 (distinguishing “good

24

cause” showing for sealing documents produced in discovery from

25

“compelling reasons” standard when merits-related documents are part

26

of court record). Accordingly, for such materials, the terms of this

27

1 the trial.

2 Even after Final Disposition of this litigation, the confidentiality

3 obligations imposed by this Stipulated Protective Order shall remain in

4 effect until a Designating Party agrees otherwise in writing or a court

5 order otherwise directs.

6 //

7 //

8

5. DESIGNATING PROTECTED MATERIAL

9

5.1 Exercise of Restraint and Care in Designating Material for

10

Protection. Each Party or Non-Party that designates information or

11

items for protection under this Order must take care to limit any such

12

designation to specific material that qualifies under the appropriate

13

standards. The Designating Party must designate for protection only

14

those parts of material, documents, items, or oral or written

15

communications that qualify so that other portions of the material,

16

documents, items, or communications for which protection is not

17

18 warranted are not swept unjustifiably within the ambit of this Order.

19 Mass, indiscriminate, or routinized designations are prohibited.

20 Designations that are shown to be clearly unjustified or that have been

21 made for an improper purpose (e.g., to unnecessarily encumber the case

22 development process or to impose unnecessary expenses and burdens on

23 other parties) may expose the Designating Party to sanctions.

24 If it comes to a Designating Party’s attention that information or

25 items that it designated for protection do not qualify for protection, that

26 Designating Party must promptly notify all other Parties that it is

27

withdrawing the inapplicable designation.

1 5.2 Manner and Timing of Designations. Except as otherwise

2 provided in this Stipulated Protective Order (see, e.g., second paragraph

3 of section 5.2(a) below), or as otherwise stipulated or ordered, Disclosure

4 or Discovery Material that qualifies for protection under this Stipulated

5 Protective Order must be clearly so designated before the material is

6 disclosed or produced.

7

//

8

Designation in conformity with this Stipulated Protective Order

9

requires:

10

(a) for information in documentary form (e.g., paper or electronic

11

documents, but excluding transcripts of depositions or other pretrial or

12

trial proceedings), that the Producing Party affix at a minimum, the

13

legend “CONFIDENTIAL” to each page that contains protected

14

material. If only a portion or portions of the material on a page

15

qualifies for protection, the Producing Party also must clearly identify

16

17 the protected portion(s) (e.g., by making appropriate markings in the

18 margins).

19 A Party or Non-Party that makes original documents available for

20 inspection need not designate them for protection until after the

21 inspecting Party has indicated which documents it would like copied

22 and produced. During the inspection and before the designation, all of

23 the material made available for inspection shall be deemed

24 CONFIDENTIAL. After the inspecting Party has identified the

25 documents it wants copied and produced, the Producing Party must

26

determine which documents, or portions thereof, qualify for protection

27

under this Stipulated Protective Order. Then, before producing the

1 specified documents, the Producing Party must affix the

2 “CONFIDENTIAL” legend to each page that contains Protected

3 Material. If only a portion or portions of the material on a page

4 qualifies for protection, the Producing Party also must clearly identify

5 the protected portion(s) (e.g., by making appropriate markings in the

6 margins).

7 (b) for testimony given in depositions that the Designating Party

8

identify the Disclosure or Discovery Material on the record, before the

9

close of the deposition all protected testimony.

10

(c) for information produced in some form other than

11

documentary and for any other tangible items, that the Producing Party

12

affix in a prominent place on the exterior of the container or containers

13

in which the information is stored the “CONFIDENTIAL” legend. If only

14

a portion or portions of the information warrants protection, the

15

Producing Party, to the extent practicable, shall identify the protected

16

portion(s).

17

18 5.3 Inadvertent Failures to Designate. If timely corrected, an

19 inadvertent failure to designate qualified information or items does not,

20 standing alone, waive the Designating Party’s right to secure protection

21 under this Order for such material. Upon timely correction of a

22 designation, the Receiving Party must make reasonable efforts to assure

23 that the material is treated in accordance with the provisions of this

24 Stipulated Protective Order.

25

26 6. CHALLENGING CONFIDENTIALITY DESIGNATIONS

27

6.1 Timing of Challenges. Any Party or Non-Party may

1 challenge a designation of confidentiality at any time that is consistent

2 with the court’s Scheduling Order.

3 6.2 Meet and Confer. The Challenging Party shall initiate the

4 dispute resolution process under Local Rule 37.1 et seq.

5 6.3 The burden of persuasion in any such challenge proceeding

6 shall be on the Designating Party. Frivolous challenges, and those

7 made for an improper purpose (e.g., to harass or impose unnecessary

8

expenses and burdens on other parties) may expose the Challenging

9

Party to sanctions. Unless the Designating Party has waived or

10

withdrawn the confidentiality designation, all parties shall continue to

11

afford the material in question the level of protection to which it is

12

entitled under the Producing Party’s designation until the court rules on

13

the challenge.

14

15

7. ACCESS TO AND USE OF PROTECTED MATERIAL

16

17 7.1 Basic Principles. A Receiving Party may use Protected

18 Material that is disclosed or produced by another Party or by a Non-

19 Party in connection with this Action only for prosecuting, defending, or

20 attempting to settle this Action. Such Protected Material may be

21 disclosed only to the categories of persons and under the conditions

22 described in this Order. When the Action reaches a Final Disposition, a

23 Receiving Party must comply with the provisions of section 13 below.

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 Stipulated Protective

27

Order.

1 7.2 Disclosure of “CONFIDENTIAL” Information or Items.

2 Unless otherwise ordered by the court or permitted in writing by the

3 Designating Party, a Receiving Party may disclose any information or

4 item designated “CONFIDENTIAL” only:

5 (a) to the Receiving Party’s Outside Counsel of Record in this

6 Action, as well as employees of said Outside Counsel of Record to whom

7 it is reasonably necessary to disclose the information for this Action;

8

//

9

(b) to the officers, directors, and employees (including In-House

10

Counsel) of the Receiving Party to whom disclosure is reasonably

11

necessary for this Action;

12

(c) to Experts (as defined in this Order) of the Receiving Party to

13

whom disclosure is reasonably necessary for this Action and who have

14

signed the “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound” (Exhibit A);

15

(d) to the court and its personnel;

16

(e) to court reporters and their staff;

17

(f) to professional jury or trial consultants, mock jurors, and

18

Professional Vendors to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary for

19

this Action and who have signed the “Acknowledgment and Agreement

20

to Be Bound” (Exhibit A);

21

22 (g) to the author or recipient of a document containing the

23 information or a custodian or other person who otherwise possessed or

24 knew the information;

25 (h) during their depositions, to witnesses, and attorneys for

26 witnesses, in the Action to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary,

27 provided: (1) the deposing party requests that the witness sign the

1 witness will not be permitted to keep any confidential information

2 unless they sign the “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound”

3 (Exhibit A), unless otherwise agreed by the Designating Party or

4 ordered by the court. Pages of transcribed deposition testimony or

5 exhibits to depositions that reveal Protected Material may be separately

6 bound by the court reporter and may not be disclosed to anyone except

7 as permitted under this Stipulated Protective Order; and

8

//

9

(i) to any mediator or settlement officer, and their supporting

10

personnel, mutually agreed upon by any of the parties engaged in

11

settlement discussions.

12

7.3 The parties acknowledge that the Court authorized early

13

discovery, in part, to permit Plaintiffs to identify and substitute Doe

14

defendants. Accordingly, notwithstanding any other provision of this

15

Order, Plaintiffs may use officer-identifying information produced by the

16

California Highway Patrol—including officer names, badge numbers,

17

titles/ranks, agency affiliation, and the officers’ alleged roles in the

18

events at issue—to amend the complaint, substitute Doe defendants,

19

effect service, and prosecute this Action. The filing of such officer-

20

identifying information for those limited purposes shall not constitute a

21

22 violation of this Order and shall not waive confidentiality as to the

23 underlying documents or any other Protected Material. This provision

24 does not permit public disclosure of peace officer personnel records,

25 personal contact information, home addresses, dates of birth, family

26 information, medical or disciplinary information, confidential law-

27 enforcement techniques, criminal-investigation strategy, third-party

1 written agreement of the Designating Party or court order.

2

3 8. PROTECTED MATERIAL SUBPOENAED OR ORDERED

4 PRODUCED IN OTHER LITIGATION

5 If a Party is served with a subpoena or a court order issued in

6 other litigation that compels disclosure of any information or items

7 designated in this Action as “CONFIDENTIAL,” that Party must:

8

(a) promptly notify in writing the Designating Party. Such

9

notification shall include a copy of the subpoena or court order;

10

(b) promptly notify in writing the party who caused the

11

subpoena or order to issue in the other litigation that some or all of the

12

material covered by the subpoena or order is subject to this Protective

13

Order. Such notification shall include a copy of this Stipulated

14

Protective Order; and

15

(c) cooperate with respect to all reasonable procedures sought to

16

be pursued by the Designating Party whose Protected Material may be

17

18 affected.

19 If the Designating Party timely seeks a protective order, the

20 Party served with the subpoena or court order shall not produce any

21 information designated in this action as “CONFIDENTIAL” before a

22 determination by the court from which the subpoena or order issued,

23 unless the Party has obtained the Designating Party’s permission. The

24 Designating Party shall bear the burden and expense of seeking

25 protection in that court of its confidential material and nothing in these

26 provisions should be construed as authorizing or encouraging a

27

Receiving Party in this Action to disobey a lawful directive from another

1 court.

2

3 9. A NON-PARTY’S PROTECTED MATERIAL SOUGHT TO BE

4 PRODUCED IN THIS LITIGATION

5 9.1 Application. The terms of this Stipulated Protective Order

6 are applicable to information produced by a Non-Party in this Action and

7 designated as “CONFIDENTIAL.” Such information produced by Non-

8

Parties in connection with this litigation is protected by the remedies

9

and relief provided by this Order. Nothing in these provisions should be

10

construed as prohibiting a Non-Party from seeking additional

11

protections.

12

9.2 Notification. In the event that a Party is required, by a valid

13

discovery request, to produce a Non-Party’s confidential information in

14

its possession, and the Party is subject to an agreement with the Non-

15

Party not to produce the Non-Party’s confidential information, then the

16

Party shall:

17

(a) promptly notify in writing the Requesting Party and the

18

Non-Party that some or all of the information requested is subject to a

19

confidentiality agreement with a Non-Party;

20

21

(b) make the information requested available for inspection by

22 the Non-Party, if requested.

23 9.3 Conditions of Production. If the Non-Party fails to seek a

24 protective order from this court within 14 days of receiving the notice

25 and accompanying information, the Receiving Party may produce the

26 Non-Party’s confidential information responsive to the discovery request.

27 If the Non-Party timely seeks a protective order, the Receiving Party

1 subject to the confidentiality agreement with the Non-Party before a

2 determination by the court. Absent a court order to the contrary, the

3 Non-Party shall bear the burden and expense of seeking protection in

4 this court of its Protected Material.

5

6

7

8

10. UNAUTHORIZED DISCLOSURE OF PROTECTED

9

MATERIAL

10

If a Receiving Party learns that, by inadvertence or otherwise, it

11

has disclosed Protected Material to any person or in any circumstance

12

not authorized under this Stipulated Protective Order, the Receiving

13

Party must immediately (a) notify in writing the Designating Party of

14

the unauthorized disclosures, (b) use its best efforts to retrieve all

15

16 unauthorized copies of the Protected Material, (c) inform the person or

17 persons to whom unauthorized disclosures were made of all the terms of

18 this Order, and (d) request such person or persons to execute the

19 “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound” (Exhibit A).

20

21

11. INADVERTENT PRODUCTION OF PRIVILEGED OR

22

OTHERWISE PROTECTED MATERIAL

23

When a Producing Party gives notice to Receiving Parties that

24

certain inadvertently produced material is subject to a claim of privilege

25

or other protection, the obligations of the Receiving Parties are those set

26

forth in Rule 26(b)(5)(B) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. This

27

1 established in an e-discovery order that provides for production without

2 prior privilege review. Pursuant to Rules 502(d) and (e) of the Federal

3 Rules of Evidence, insofar as the parties reach an agreement on the

4 effect of disclosure of a communication or information covered by the

5 attorney-client privilege or work product protection, the parties may

6 incorporate their agreement in the stipulated protective order

7 submitted to the court.

8

12. MISCELLANEOUS

9

12.1 Right to Further Relief. Nothing in this Stipulated

10

Protective Order abridges the right of any person to seek its

11

modification by the court in the future.

12

12.2 Right to Assert Other Objections. By stipulating to the entry

13

of this Stipulated Protective Order no Party waives any right it

14

otherwise would have to object to disclosing or producing any

15

information or item on any ground not addressed in this Stipulated

16

Protective Order. Similarly, no Party waives any right to object on any

17

18 ground to use in evidence of any of the material covered by this

19 Stipulated Protective Order.

20 12.3 Filing Protected Material. A Party that seeks to file under

21 seal any Protected Material must comply with Local Rule 79-5.

22 Protected Material may only be filed under seal pursuant to a court

23 order authorizing the sealing of the specific Protected Material at issue.

24 If a Party's request to file Protected Material under seal is denied by the

25 court, then the Receiving Party may file the information in the public

26 record unless otherwise instructed by the court.

27

1 13. FINAL DISPOSITION

2 After the Final Disposition of this Action, as defined in paragraph

3 4, within 60 days of a written request by the Designating Party, each

4

Receiving Party must return all Protected Material to the Producing

5

Party or destroy such material. As used in this subdivision, “all

6

Protected Material” includes all copies, abstracts, compilations,

7

summaries, and any other format reproducing or capturing any of the

8

Protected Material. Whether the Protected Material is returned or

9

destroyed, the Receiving Party must submit a written certification to

10

the Producing Party (and, if not the same person or entity, to the

11

Designating Party) by the 60 day deadline that (1) identifies (by

12

category, where appropriate) all the Protected Material that was

13

returned or destroyed and (2) affirms that the Receiving Party has not

14

retained any copies, abstracts, compilations, summaries or any other

15

format reproducing or capturing any of the Protected Material.

16

Notwithstanding this provision, Counsel is entitled to retain an archival

17

18 copy of all pleadings, motion papers, trial, deposition, and hearing

19 transcripts, legal memoranda, correspondence, deposition and trial

20 exhibits, expert reports, attorney work product, and consultant and

21 expert work product, even if such materials contain Protected Material.

22 Any such archival copies that contain or constitute Protected Material

23 remain subject to this Protective Order as set forth in Section 4.

24

25

26

27

1 14. VIOLATION

2 Any violation of this Stipulated Protective Order may be punished

3 by any and all appropriate measures including, without limitation,

4 contempt proceedings and/or monetary sanctions.

5

6 IT IS SO STIPULATED, THROUGH COUNSEL OF RECORD.

7 DATED: July 7, 2026 LAW OFFICE OF LOUIS P. DELL

8

/s/ Louis P. Dell

9

John-Louis H. Dell

10 Louis P. Dell

Attorneys for Plaintiffs

11

VYACHESLAV FINOGEYEV and

12 NATALYA FINOGEYEVA

13

14

DATED: July 7, 2026 WOMBLE BOND DICKINSON (US)

15 LLP

16

/s/ Alisa A. Givental

17

Alisa A. Givental

18 Attorneys for Defendant

MERCEDES-BENZ FINANCIAL

19

SERVICES USA LLC

20

21

22 DATED: July 7, 2026 SIDRAN LAW CORP.

23

/s/ David R. Sidran

24 David R. Sidran

Thomas M. Crowell

25

Attorneys for Defendant

26 URT KEYSTONE, INC.

27

1

2 || DATED: July 7, 2026 ROB BONTA

3 Attorney General of California

4 /s/ Donna M. Dean

5 DONNA M. DEAN

Supervising Deputy Attorney

6 General

7 Attorneys for Non-Party

STATE OF CALIFORNIA, by and

8 through CALIFORNIA HIGHWAY

9 PATROL

10

1] □ □

Attestation of Signatures

12

I, Louis P. Dell, attest that all other signatories listed, and on

13

14 whose behalf the filing is submitted, concur in the filing’s content and

15 have authorized the filing.

16

/s/ Louis P. Dell

Louis P. Dell

18

19

20

FOR GOOD CAUSE SHOWN, IT IS SO ORDERED.

22

33 DATED: July 7, 2026

54 DIANA M. Kwok

United States Magistrate Judge

25

26

27

28

1 EXHIBIT A

ACKNOWLEDGMENT AND AGREEMENT TO BE BOUND

2

3

I, ________________________ [print or type full name], of

4

_________________ [print or type full address], declare under

5

penalty of perjury that I have read in its entirety and understand the

6

Stipulated Protective Order that was issued by the United States

7

District Court for the Central District of California on [date] in the

8

case of __________ [insert formal name of the case and the

9

number and initials assigned to it by the court]. I agree to

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comply with and to be bound by all the terms of this Stipulated

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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

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14 contempt. I solemnly promise that I will not disclose in any manner

15 any information or item that is subject to this Stipulated Protective

16 Order to any person or entity except in strict compliance with the

17 provisions of this Order.

18 I further agree to submit to the jurisdiction of the United States

19 District Court for the Central District of California for the purpose of

20 enforcing the terms of this Stipulated Protective Order, even if such

21 enforcement proceedings occur after termination of this action. I

22 hereby appoint ________________________ [print or type full name]

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of _________ [print or type full address and telephone number] as

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1 my California agent for service of process in connection with this action

2 or any proceedings related to enforcement of this Stipulated Protective

3 Order.

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5 Date: ___________________________

6 City and State where sworn and

7 signed: ___________________________

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Printed name: ___________________________

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Signature: ___________________________

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This is a copy of a public record, reproduced as it was published. It is not legal advice, and it may not be the version a court would rely on. Check the official source before you cite it.

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