Clemmons v. Upfield US Inc.

Background

Duval Clemmons brought this action individually and on behalf of all others similarly situated against Upfield US Inc. The parties, through counsel, asked the court to enter a protective order under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(c) for confidential material exchanged during discovery.

The parties represented that discovery would involve confidential documents or information whose public disclosure could harm the person producing it or a third party that owed a duty of confidentiality. They also acknowledged that the order would provide protection only for information entitled to confidential treatment under applicable legal principles, would not create an automatic right to file material under seal, and would not provide blanket protection for all discovery responses or disclosures.

Order

The court found good cause for an appropriately limited confidentiality order governing the pretrial phase of the case and ordered all persons subject to it to follow its terms. Those persons include the parties, their representatives, agents, experts, consultants, third parties providing discovery, and others with actual or constructive notice of the order.

A person receiving discovery material designated as confidential generally may not disclose it except as the order permits. Confidential designations may cover certain previously undisclosed financial, ownership, commercial, personal, or intimate information, as well as other information later given confidential status by the court. The order describes procedures for designating ordinary discovery materials and deposition testimony, including a 30-day period after a deposition during which the entire transcript is treated as confidential.

The order permits disclosure to specified recipients, including the parties and their insurers, counsel and litigation-support personnel, certain mediators and arbitrators, document authors and addressees, potential witnesses, experts and consultants, deposition stenographers, and the court. Mediators, arbitrators, witnesses, experts, and consultants must first receive the order and sign a nondisclosure agreement. Parties may object to confidentiality designations or request stricter categories such as “Highly Confidential” or “Attorneys’ Eyes Only.”

Use, Sealing, and Enforcement

Recipients may use confidential discovery material only to prosecute or defend this action and any appeals. The order prohibits use for business, commercial, competitive, or other legal proceedings, while preserving rights concerning a person’s own information and information obtained independently of discovery.

The order addresses subpoenas and other compulsory process, requiring notice to the producing person when legally permitted. A party filing papers under seal must also publicly file a redacted version. No document may be filed under seal without a further court order addressing the specific material, and an application to seal must include supporting affidavits and a memorandum of law addressing the applicable standards, including the authority identified by the court.

Persons with access to confidential material must take precautions against unauthorized or accidental disclosure. Personally identifying information, such as Social Security numbers, financial account numbers, passwords, and information usable for identity theft, must be kept secure and confidential; a recipient experiencing a data breach must immediately notify the producing person and cooperate in addressing it. The order remains in effect after the litigation ends, and designated discovery material generally must be returned or destroyed within 30 days after final disposition. Willful violations may result in contempt of court, and the court retains jurisdiction to enforce the order and impose contempt sanctions.