United States District Court, E.D. Arkansas, Western Division
NICHOLE PLANTS, et al. PLAINTIFFS
v.
US PIZZA COMPANY INC. DEFENDANT
PROTECTIVE ORDER
KRISTINE G. BAKER UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
Before
the Court is the parties' motion for entry of agreed
protective order (Dkt. No. 25). Pursuant to the agreement by
the parties and Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(c), the
Court grants the motion for protective order (Id.).
The
parties to this case, through their respective counsel, agree
to protect the confidentiality of certain information
(including deposition testimony) and documents (including
documents stored in any electronic format) which may be
discovered or offered into evidence at the trial of this
case. The parties agree that the confidentiality of such
information and documents shall be preserved under the terms
of this Protective Order. Accordingly, the Court finds the
following:
1. It
is agreed that material requested by any of the parties,
which they deem confidential, shall be deemed confidential
and disclosed only to the following individuals, each of whom
shall be required to read this Protective Order and agree to
abide by its terms before being given any of the information:
a. Counsel for plaintiffs and counsel for defendant and their
staff to the extent reasonably necessary to render
professional services in the litigation;
b. The parties to the litigation and their experts;
c. The Court and its staff;
d. Any other individuals agreed by the parties in writing, so
long as those individuals agree in writing to be bound by
this Protective Order; and
e. Any other individuals included by order of the Court.
Materials
that may be designated confidential under this Protective
Order are those materials the privacy or confidentiality of
which are protected by law, including medical records,
employment records or information, and trade secrets.
Documents produced by the parties to which this Protective
Order is applicable shall be stamped
“CONFIDENTIAL.”
2. The
inadvertent production, without designation as confidential,
of information or a document intended to be designated or
that should have been designated as being confidential shall
not waive the right to so designate such document or
information. Any information or documentation that is
inadvertently not designated as being confidential when
produced shall be, upon written request of the producing
party, thereafter treated as being designated as confidential
under this Protective Order.
3. A
party may designate as “CONFIDENTIAL” portions of
any deposition transcript wherein materials designated as
“CONFIDENTIAL” are identified, discussed, or
disclosed. Portions of a deposition transcript so designated
will be subject to the terms of this Protective Order. The
designation must be made by letter sent by facsimile or
electronic mail to opposing counsel within twenty-one (21)
business days after receipt of the transcript. Any
confidentiality designation asserted on the record during a
deposition must be confirmed in writing within this same time
period, providing the specific pages of the transcript that
are designated as “CONFIDENTIAL.” The portions of
a deposition transcript that mention or discuss materials
designated as “CONFIDENTIAL” must be treated as
“CONFIDENTIAL” and therefore subject to this
Protective Order until 5:00 p.m. Central Time on the
twenty-first (21st) business day after receipt of the
transcript. All portions of the deposition transcript not
designated as “CONFIDENTIAL” by 5:00 p.m. Central
Time on the twenty-first (21st) business day after receipt of
the transcript are excluded from the protections of this
Protective Order.
4. A
lawyer who wishes to challenge the “CONFIDENTIAL”
designation made by the producing party of any materials must
first attempt in good faith to confer with lawyers for the
producing party in an effort to resolve the issue amicably.
If agreement cannot be reached, the challenging party may
file a motion asking the Court to remove the designation. The
motion should describe with specificity the particular
materials for which the designation is being challenged and
set forth with specificity the particular materials that are
not properly designated as “CONFIDENTIAL.” The
party seeking to maintain materials as
“CONFIDENTIAL” generally will bear the burden of
proving that the designation is proper. Materials designated
as “CONFIDENTIAL” will continue to be treated as
such and subject to the provisions of this Protective Order
pending determination by the Court of the merits of any such
challenge.
5.
Subject to the Federal Rules of Evidence, any confidential
information or documents may be offered in evidence at any
Court hearing or trial. Any party may move the Court to
prevent ...