United States District Court, E.D. Michigan
PROTECTIVE ORDER
MATTHEW F. LEITMAN UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE.
In the
above-entitled action, Plaintiff Genesis Attachments, LLC
(“Plaintiff”) and Defendant Detroit Edge Tool
Company (“Defendant”) may seek discovery of
documents, information or other material that may contain
trade secrets or other confidential research, development, or
commercial information of another Party or of third parties.
The Parties reasonably believe that the public disclosure of
trade secrets or other confidential research, development or
commercial information would cause unnecessary financial
and/or other competitive injury to the disclosing party.
Therefore, upon stipulation of the Parties and pursuant to
Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(c)(1), the following terms
and conditions of this Protective Order shall govern the
disclosure, production, and use of information, documents and
tangible things in connection with the above-entitled action.
1. As
used in this Protective Order, these terms have the following
meanings:
a. “Attorneys” means outside counsel of record in
the above-entitled action.
b. “Document” or “document” has the
meaning prescribed in Fed.R.Civ.P. 26 and 34.
c. “Producing Party” means any Party or non-party
producing documents, information, or tangible items in the
above-entitled action.
d. “Receiving Party” means any Party or non-party
that has been or becomes lawfully in the possession of
documents, information, or tangible items produced by a
Producing Party.
e. “CONFIDENTIAL” means documents or information
not publicly known concerning, reflecting, revealing, or
relating to processes, operations, production, shipments, or
other confidential or proprietary commercial, marketing,
advertising, financial, business operations, processes, or
personnel information within the scope of Fed.R.Civ.P.
26(c)(1)(G). “CONFIDENTIAL” information is
information which the Producing Party would not normally
reveal to third parties, or if disclosed, would require such
third parties to maintain the information in confidence.
f. “ATTORNEYS’ EYES ONLY” means documents
or information which would be of value to a competitor of the
Producing Party and/or the disclosure of which would cause
competitive harm or injury to the Producing Party if
disclosed. “ATTORNEYS’ EYES ONLY”
information includes but is not limited to engineering,
design, manufacturing, fabrication and assembly drawings of a
Party’s existing or future products and components and
all research, development and other technical information
related thereto, all non-published patent applications,
current or future financial or technical trade secrets and
plans and related information that may include financial data
and projections including profits, sales volumes and costs;
non-public pricing information; past, present or future
competitive analyses; business strategy; marketing strategy;
non-public agreements or relationships with third parties,
including but not limited to customers, distributors and
suppliers including their identities; technical practices,
methods, or other know-how; and research for and production
of current or future products that are not covered by the
claims of U.S. Reissue Patent No. RE45, 341 and inventions in
progress.
g. “TRIAL COUNSEL’S EYES ONLY” means
documents or information which would be of value to a
competitor of the Producing Party and the disclosure of which
to any attorneys who participate in the prosecution in front
of the United States Patent and Trademark Office of any claim
in any patent application pertaining to the subject matter of
the material marked “TRIAL COUNSEL’S EYES
ONLY” would cause competitive harm or injury to the
Producing Party if disclosed. “TRIAL COUNSEL’S
EYES ONLY” information includes but is not limited to
engineering, design, manufacturing, fabrication and assembly
drawings of a Party’s future products and components
and all research, development and other technical information
related thereto, all non-published patent applications,
current or future technical trade secrets and plans and
related information; technical practices, methods, or other
technical know-how; and research for and production of future
products that are not covered by the claims of U.S. Reissue
Patent No. RE45, 341 and inventions in progress.
h. “Protected Information” means collectively all
information or documents designated “CONFIDENTIAL,
” “ATTORNEYS’ EYES ONLY” or
“TRIAL COUNSEL’S EYES ONLY” under this
Protective Order.
2. All
Protected Information shall be used solely for the purpose of
this action, and no person receiving such documents or
information shall, directly or indirectly, use, transfer,
disclose, or communicate in any way the documents or their
contents or other information to any person other than those
specified in paragraphs 3, 4, or 5, respectively. Any other
use is prohibited.
3.
Access to any CONFIDENTIAL document or information shall be
limited to:
a. the Court, its staff, and the Court’s appointed
Special Master and his staff;
b. Attorneys, employees and staff of their law firms working
under the supervision of such Attorneys, e-discovery vendors,
and vendors providing messenger, photocopying, or other
clerical services with which Attorneys contract in connection
with the above-captioned matter;
c. persons shown on the face of the document to have authored
or received it;
d. court reporters and videographers retained to transcribe
and/or record testimony;
e. a Party’s officers or employees directly involved in
this case whose access to the information or documents is
reasonably required to supervise, manage or participate in
the case;
f. outside independent persons (i.e., persons not currently
or formerly employed by, or not consulting as a business
consultant with, any Party) who are retained by a Party or
its Attorneys to provide assistance as mock jurors or focus
group members or the like, or to furnish technical or expert
services regarding this matter, and/or to give testimony in
this action (“Outside Independent Persons”);
g. other persons only upon order of the Court or any other
person as to whom the Producing Party agrees in writing prior
to such disclosure.
4.
Access to any ATTORNEYS’ EYES ONLY document or
information shall be limited to the persons and entities
identified ...