PROTECTIVE ORDER ENTERED PURSUANT TO THE STIPULATION OF THE PARTIES

MARGARET A. NAGLE, Magistrate Judge.

Pursuant to Rule 26(c) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and based on the parties' Stipulation For Protective Order ("Stipulation") filed on November 14, 2014, the terms of this Protective Order to which the parties have agreed are adopted as a protective order of this Court (which generally shall govern the pretrial phase of this action) except to the extent, as set forth below, that those terms have been substantively modified by the Court's amendment of paragraphs 2, 6, 9, and 10 of, and Exhibit A to, the Stipulation.

The parties are expressly cautioned that the designation of any information, document, or thing as Confidential or other designation(s) used by the parties, does not, in and of itself, create any entitlement to file such information, document, or thing, in whole or in part, under seal. Accordingly, reference to this Protective Order or to the parties' designation of any information, document, or thing as Confidential or other designation(s) used by the parties, is wholly insufficient to warrant a filing under seal.

There is a strong presumption that the public has a right of access to judicial proceedings and records in civil cases. In connection with non-dispositive motions, good cause must be shown to support a filing under seal. The parties' mere designation of any information, document, or thing as Confidential or other designation(s) used by parties, does not — without the submission of competent evidence, in the form of a declaration or declarations, establishing that the material sought to be filed under seal qualifies as confidential, privileged, or otherwise protectable — constitute good cause.

Further, if sealing is requested in connection with a dispositive motion or trial, then compelling reasons, as opposed to good cause, for the sealing must be shown, and the relief sought shall be narrowly tailored to serve the specific interest to be protected. See Pintos v. Pacific Creditors Ass'n, 605 F.3d 665, 677-79 (9th Cir. 2010). For each item or type of information, document, or thing sought to be filed or introduced under seal in connection with a dispositive motion or trial, the party seeking protection must articulate compelling reasons, supported by specific facts and legal justification, for the requested sealing order. Again, competent evidence supporting the application to file documents under seal must be provided by declaration.

Any document that is not confidential, privileged, or otherwise protectable in its entirety will not be filed under seal if the confidential portions can be redacted. If documents can be redacted, then a redacted version for public viewing, omitting only the confidential, privileged, or otherwise protectable portions of the document, shall be filed. Any application that seeks to file documents under seal in their entirety should include an explanation of why redaction is not feasible.

Notwithstanding any other provision of this Protective Order, in the event that this case proceeds to trial, all information, documents, and things discussed or introduced into evidence at trial will become public and available to all members of the public, including the press, unless sufficient cause is shown in advance of trial to proceed otherwise.

Further, notwithstanding any other provision of this Protective Order, no obligation is imposed on the Court or its personnel beyond those imposed by the Court's general practices and procedures.

THE PARTIES ARE DIRECTED TO REVIEW CAREFULLY AND ACT IN COMPLIANCE WITH ALL ORDERS ISSUED BY THE HONORABLE DOLLY M. GEE, UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE, INCLUDING THOSE APPLICABLE TO FILINGS UNDER SEAL.

AGREED TERMS OF THIS PROTECTIVE ORDER AS ADOPTED AND MODIFIED BY THE COURT1

1. As used in this Protective Order, these terms have the following meanings:

2. A Party may designate a document "Confidential", to protect information disclosed pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(a)-(b) or (e).

3. All Confidential documents, along with the information contained in the documents, shall be used solely for the purpose of this action, and no person receiving such documents shall, directly or indirectly, use, transfer, disclose, or communicate in any way the documents or their contents to any person other than those specified in paragraph 4. Any other use is prohibited.

4. Access to any Confidential document shall be limited to:

5. Third parties producing documents in the course of this action may also designate documents as "Confidential," subject to the same protections and constraints as the parties to the action. A copy of this Protective Order shall be served along with any subpoena served in connection with this action. All documents produced by such third parties shall be treated as "Confidential" for a period of 14 days from the date of their production, and during that period any party may designate such documents as "Confidential" pursuant to the terms of this Protective Order.

6. Each person appropriately designated pursuant to paragraph 4f to receive Confidential information shall execute a "Written Assurance" in the form attached as Exhibit A. Opposing counsel shall be notified at least fourteen (14) days prior to disclosure to any such person who is known to be an employee or agent of, or consultant to, any competitor of the party whose designated documents are sought to be disclosed. Such notice shall provide a reasonable description of the outside independent person to whom disclosure is sought sufficient to permit objection to be made. If a party objects in writing to such disclosure within 14 days after receipt of notice, no disclosure shall be made until the party seeking disclosure obtains the prior approval of the Court or the objecting party. The party challenging the proposed disclosure shall bear the burden and expense of seeking protection in this court of its confidential material.

7. Depositions or portions of depositions taken in this action may be designated "Confidential" and thereby obtain the protections accorded other "Confidential" documents. Confidentiality designations for depositions shall be made either on the record or by written notice to the other party within 14 days of receipt of the transcript. Unless otherwise agreed, depositions shall be treated as "Confidential" during the 14-day period following receipt of the transcript. The deposition of any witness (or any portion of such deposition) that encompasses Confidential information shall be taken only in the presence of persons who are qualified to have access to such information.

8. Any party who inadvertently fails to identify documents as "Confidential" shall, promptly upon discovery of its oversight, provide written notice of the error and substitute appropriately-designated documents. Any party receiving such improperly-designated documents shall retrieve such documents from persons not entitled to receive those documents and, upon receipt of the substitute documents, shall return or destroy the improperly-designated documents.

9. If a party files a document containing Confidential information with the Court, it shall do so in compliance with the Electronic Case Filing Procedures for the Central District of California, Local Rule 79-5, and the provisions of this Protective Order. Prior to disclosure at trial or a hearing of materials or information designated "Confidential," the parties may seek further protections against public disclosure from the Court.

10. Any party may request a change in the designation of any information designated "Confidential." Any such document shall be treated as designated until the change is completed. If the requested change in designation is not agreed to, the party seeking the change may move the Court for appropriate relief, providing notice to any third party whose designation of produced documents as "Confidential" in the action may be affected. The party asserting that the material is Confidential shall have the burden of proving that the information in question is within the scope of protection afforded by the controlling case law.

11. Within 60 days of the termination of this action, including any appeals, each party shall either destroy or return to the opposing party all documents designated by the opposing party as "Confidential," and all copies of such documents, and shall destroy all extracts and/or data taken from such documents. Each party shall provide a certification as to such return or destruction within the 60-day period. However, Attorneys shall be entitled to retain a set of all documents filed with the Court and all correspondence generated in connection with the action.

12. Any party may apply to the Court for a modification of this Protective Order, and nothing in this Protective Order shall be construed to prevent a party from seeking such further provisions enhancing or limiting confidentiality as may be appropriate.

13. No action taken in accordance with this Protective Order shall be construed as a waiver of any claim or defense in the action or of any position as to discoverability or admissibility of evidence.

14. The obligations imposed by this Protective Order shall survive the termination of this action.

IT IS SO ORDERED.

EXHIBIT A

WRITTEN ASSURANCE

_________________________________________ declares that: I reside at _______________________________________ in the City of __________________, County of _________________________, State of ___________________________. My telephone number is __________________________________.

I am currently employed by ___________________________________, located at _____________________________________________________, and my current job title is _________________________________________________. I have read and I understand the terms of the Protective Order filed in Case No. CV 13-6003-DMG (MANx), pending in the United States District Court for the Central District of California. I agree to comply with and be bound by the provisions of the Protective Order. I understand that any violation of the Protective Order may subject me to sanctions by the Court.

I shall not divulge any documents, or copies of documents, designated "Confidential" pursuant to such Protective Order, or the contents of such documents, to any person other than those specifically authorized by the Protective Order. I shall not copy or use such documents except for the purposes of this action and pursuant to the terms of the Protective Order.

As soon as practical, but no later than 30 days after final termination of this action, I shall return to the attorney from whom I have received them, any documents in my possession designated "Confidential," and all copies, excerpts, summaries, notes, digests, abstracts, and indices relating to such documents.

I submit myself to the jurisdiction of the United States District Court for the Central District of California for the purpose of enforcing or otherwise providing relief relating to the Protective Order.