Document ID: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-caed-1_19-cv-01312/USCOURTS-caed-1_19-cv-01312-2/pdf.json

Parties Involved:
FCA US LLC
Defendant
Angel Isais
Plaintiff
Johnny Isais
Plaintiff

Document Text:

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NIXON PEABODY LLP

Jennifer A. Kuenster, Esq. (SBN 104607)

Leon V. Roubinian, Esq. (SBN 226893)

One Embarcadero Center, 32nd Floor

San Francisco, CA 94111

T 415-984-8200

F 415-984-8300

lroubinian@nixonpeabody.com

Attorneys for Defendant 

FCA US LLC

ROMANO STANCROFF PC

Mark Romano, Esq. (SBN 244113)

Timothy Whelan, Esq. (SBN 255037)

Aliaksandra Valitskaya, Esq. (SBN 320680)

360 N. Pacific Coast Hwy., Suite 1010

El Segundo, CA 90245

Telephone: (310) 477-7990

Fax: (310) 477-7995

mark@thelemonlawattorneys.com

Attorneys for Plaintiffs,

ANGEL ISAIS and JOHNNY ISAIS

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

ANGEL ISAIS and JOHNNY ISAIS,

Plaintiffs,

v.

FCA US LLC, a Delaware Limited Liability 

Company, and DOES 1 through 10, 

inclusive, 

Defendants.

Case No. 1:19-cv-01312-SAB

ORDER RE STIPULATED 

PROTECTIVE ORDER

(ECF No. 14)

IT IS HEREBY STIPULATED by and between the Plaintiffs, ANGEL ISAIS and 

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JOHNNY ISAIS, and Defendant, FCA US LLC (“FCA”) (collectively the “Parties”) by 

and through their respective counsel of record, that in order to facilitate the exchange of 

information and documents which may be subject to confidentiality limitations of

disclosure due to federal laws, state laws, and privacy rights, the Parties stipulate as 

follows: 

1. In this Stipulation and Protective Order, the words set forth below shall have the 

following meanings: 

a. “Proceeding” means the above-entitled proceeding, ANGEL ISAIS AND 

JOHNNY ISAIS v. FCA US LLC, United States District Court for the Eastern

District of California Case No. 19-CV-01312-DAD-SAB.

b. “Court” means the Hon. Stanley A. Boone or any other Judge to which this 

Proceeding may be assigned, including Court staff participating in such 

proceedings.

c. “Confidential” means any information which is in the possession of a 

Designating Party who believes in good faith that such information is entitled 

to confidential treatment under applicable law.

d. “Confidential Materials” means any Documents, Testimony, or Information as 

defined below designated as “Confidential” pursuant to the provisions of this 

Stipulation and Protective Order.

e. “Designating Party” means the Party that designates Materials as 

“Confidential.”

f. “Disclose” or “Disclosed” or “Disclosure” means to reveal, divulge, give, or 

make available Materials, or any part thereof, or any information contained 

therein.

g. “Documents” means (i) any writings, recordings, photographs, or originals 

under FRE 1001, which have been produced in discovery in this Proceeding 

by any person, and (ii) any copies, reproductions, or summaries of all or any 

part of the foregoing. 

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h. “Information” means the content of Documents or Testimony.

i. “Testimony” means all depositions, declarations, or other testimony taken or 

used in this Proceeding. 

2. The Designating Party shall have the right to designate as “Confidential” any 

Documents, Testimony, or Information that the Designating Party in good faith 

believes to contain non-public information that is entitled to confidential treatment 

under applicable law.

3. The entry of this Stipulation and Protective Order does not alter, waive, modify, or 

abridge any right, privilege, or protection otherwise available to any Party with 

respect to the discovery of matters, including, but not limited to, any Party’s right to 

assert the attorney-client privilege, the attorney work product doctrine, or other 

privileges, or any Party’s right to contest any such assertion.

4. Any Documents, Testimony, or Information to be designated as “Confidential”

must be clearly so designated before the Document, Testimony, or Information is 

Disclosed or produced. The Parties may agree that the case name and number are 

to be part of the “Confidential” designation. The “Confidential” designation should 

not obscure or interfere with the legibility of the designation Information. 

a. For Documents (apart from transcripts of depositions or other pretrial or trial 

proceedings), the Designating Party must affix the legend “Confidential” on 

each page of any Document containing such designated Confidential Material.

b. For Testimony given in depositions, the Designating Party may either:

i. Identify on the record, before the close of the deposition, all 

“Confidential” Testimony, by specifying all portions of the Testimony 

that qualify as “Confidential;” or

ii. Designate the entirety of the Testimony at the deposition as 

“Confidential” (before the deposition is concluded) with the right to 

identify more specific portions of the Testimony as to which protection 

is sought within 30 days following receipt of the deposition transcript. 

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In circumstances where portions of the deposition Testimony are 

designated for protection, the transcript pages containing 

“Confidential” Information may be separately bound by the court 

reporter, who must affix to the top of each page the legend 

“Confidential,” as instructed by the Designating Party. 

c. For Information produced in some form other than Documents, and for any 

other tangible items, including, without limitation, compact discs or DVD’s, 

the Designating Party must affix in a prominent place on the exterior of the 

container or containers in which the Information or item is stored the legend 

“Confidential.” If only portions of the Information or item warrant protection, 

the Designating Party, to the extent practicable, shall identify the 

“Confidential” portions.

5. The inadvertent production by any of the undersigned Parties or non-Parties to the 

Proceedings of any Document, Testimony, or Information during discovery in this 

Proceeding without a “Confidential” designation, shall be without prejudice to any 

claim that such item is “Confidential” and such Party shall not be held to have 

waived any rights by such inadvertent production. In the event that any Document, 

Testimony, or Information that is subject to “Confidential” designation is 

inadvertently produced without such designation, the Party that inadvertently 

produced the Document shall give written notice of such inadvertent production 

within twenty (20) days of discovery of the inadvertent production, together with a 

further copy of the subject Document, Testimony, or Information designated as 

“Confidential” (the “Inadvertent Production Notice”). Upon receipt of such 

Inadvertent Production Notice, the Party that received the inadvertently produced 

Document, Testimony, or Information shall promptly destroy the inadvertently 

produced Document, Testimony, or Information and all copies thereof, or at the 

expense of the producing Party, return such together with all copies of such 

Document, Testimony, or Information to counsel for the producing Party and shall 

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retain only the “Confidential” designated Materials. Should the receiving Party 

choose to destroy such inadvertently produced Document, Testimony, or 

Information, the receiving Party shall notify the producing Party in writing of such 

destruction within ten (10) days of receipt of written notice of the inadvertent 

production. This provision is not intended to apply to any inadvertent production of 

any Information protected by the attorney-client or work product privileges. In the 

event that this provision conflicts with any applicable law regarding waiver of 

confidentiality through the inadvertent production of Documents, Testimony, or 

Information, such law shall govern. 

6. Good Cause Statement. FCA contends:

a. FCA US may produce documents which contain proprietary design materials, 

engineering design and testing information, as well as proprietary internal 

processes and procedures for the handling of warranty related concerns and 

design improvements. FCA US contends that public disclosure of such 

documents would be of substantial interest to FCA US’s competitors and 

disclosure of the materials would harm FCA US’s competitive position in the 

industry. 

b. Such confidential and proprietary materials and information may also consist 

of other confidential business or financial information, information regarding 

confidential business practices, or other confidential research, development, 

or commercial information (including information implicating privacy rights 

of third parties), information otherwise generally unavailable to the public, or 

which may be privileged or otherwise protected from disclosure under state 

or federal statutes, court rules, case decisions, or common law. Accordingly, 

to expedite the flow of information, to facilitate the prompt resolution of 

disputes over confidentiality of discovery materials, to adequately protect 

information the parties are entitled to keep confidential, to ensure that the 

parties are permitted reasonable necessary uses of such material in 

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preparation for and in the conduct of trial, to address their handling at the end 

of the litigation, and serve the ends of justice, a protective order for such 

information is justified in this matter.

7. In the event that counsel for a Party receiving Documents, Testimony, or 

Information in discovery designated as “Confidential” objects to such designation 

with respect to any or all of such items, said counsel shall advise counsel for the 

Designating Party, in writing, of such objections, the specific Documents, 

Testimony, or Information to which each objection pertains, and the specific 

reasons and support for such objections (the “Designation Objections”). Counsel for 

the Designating party shall have thirty (30) days from receipt of the written 

Designation Objections to either (a) agree in writing to de-designate Documents, 

Testimony, or Information pursuant to any or all of the Designation Objections 

and/or (b) file a motion with the Court seeking to uphold any or all designations on 

Documents, Testimony, or Information addressed by the Designation Objections 

(the “Designation Motion”). Pending a resolution of the Designation Motion by the 

Court, any and all existing designations on the Documents, Testimony, or 

Information at issue in such motion shall remain in place. The Designating Party 

shall have the burden on any Designation Motion of establishing the applicability of 

its “Confidential” designation. In the event that the Designation Objections are 

neither timely agreed to nor timely addressed in the Designation Motion, then such 

Documents, Testimony, or Information shall be de-designated in accordance with 

the Designation Objection applicable to such material.

8. Access to and/or Disclosure of Confidential Materials designated as “Confidential” 

shall be permitted only to the following persons:

a. The Court;

b. (1) Attorneys of record in the Proceedings and their affiliated attorneys, 

paralegals, clerical and secretarial staff employed by such attorneys who are 

actively involved in the Proceedings and are not employees of any Party. (2) 

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In-house counsel to the undersigned Parties and the paralegal, clerical and 

secretarial staff employed by such counsel. Provided, however, that each nonlawyer given access to such Confidential Materials shall be advised that such 

Materials are being Disclosed pursuant to, and subject to, the terms of this 

Stipulation and Protective Order and that they may not be Disclosed other 

than pursuant to its terms;

c. Plaintiffs, Angel Isais and Johnny Isais;

d. Court reporters in this Proceeding (whether at depositions, hearings, or any 

other proceeding);

e. Any deposition, trial, or hearing witness in the Proceeding who previously has 

had access to the Confidential Materials, or who is currently or was previously 

an officer, director, partner, member, employee, or agent of any entity that has 

had access to the Confidential Materials;

f. Any deposition or non-trial hearing witness in the proceeding who previously 

did not have access to the Confidential Materials; provided, however, that 

each such witness given access to Confidential Materials shall be advised that 

such Materials are being Disclosed pursuant to, and are subject to, the terms 

of this Stipulation and Protective order and they may not be Disclosed other 

than pursuant to its terms;

g. Mock jury participants, provided, however, that prior to the Disclosure of 

Confidential Materials to any such mock jury participant, counsel for the Party 

making the Disclosure shall deliver a copy of this Stipulation and Protective

Order to such person, shall explain that such person is bound to follow the 

terms of such Order, and shall secure the signature of such person on a 

statement in the form attached hereto as Exhibit A;

h. Outside experts or expert consultants consulted by the undersigned Parties or 

their counsel in connection with the Proceeding, whether or not retained to 

testify at any oral hearing; provided, however, that prior to the Disclosure of 

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Confidential Materials to any such expert or expert consultant, counsel for the 

Party making the Disclosure shall deliver a copy of this Stipulation and 

Protective Order to such person, shall explain its terms to such person, and 

shall secure the signature of such person on a statement in the form attached 

hereto as Exhibit A. It shall be the obligation of counsel, upon learning of any 

breach or threatened breach of this Stipulation and Protective Order by any 

such expert or expert consultant, to promptly notify counsel for the 

Designating Party of such breach or threatened breach; and

i. Any other person that the Designating Party agrees to in writing. 

9. Confidential Materials shall be used by the persons receiving them only for the 

purposes of preparing for, conducting, participating in the conduct of, and/or 

prosecuting and/or defending the Proceeding, and not for any business or other 

purpose whatsoever. 

10.Any Party to the Proceeding (or other person subject to the terms of this Stipulation 

and Protective Order) may ask the Court, after appropriate notice to the other 

Parties to the Proceeding, to modify or grant relief from any provision of this 

Stipulation and Protective Order. 

11.Entering into, agreeing to, and/or complying with the terms of this Stipulation and 

Protective Order shall not:

a. Operate as an admission by any person that any particular Document, 

Testimony, or Information marked “Confidential” contains or reflects trade 

secrets, proprietary, confidential, or competitively sensitive business, 

commercial, financial, or personal information; or

b. Prejudice in any way the right of any Party (or any other person subject to the 

terms of this Stipulation and Protective Order):

i. To seek a determination by the Court of whether any particular 

Confidential material should be subject to protection as “Confidential” 

under the terms of this Stipulation and Protective Order; or

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ii. To seek relief from the Court on appropriate notice to all other Parties 

to the Proceeding from any provision(s) of this Stipulation and 

Protective Order, either generally or as to any particular Document, 

Material, or Information.

12.Any Party to the Proceeding who has not executed this Stipulation and Protective 

Order as of the time it is presented to the Court for signature may thereafter become 

a Party to this Stipulation and Protective Order by its counsel’s signing and dating a 

copy thereof and filing the same with the Court, and serving copies of such signed 

and dated copy upon the other Parties to this Stipulation and Protective Order. 

13.Any Information that may be produced by a non-Party witness in discovery in the 

Proceeding pursuant to subpoena or otherwise may be designated by such non-Party 

as “Confidential” under the terms of this Stipulation and Protective Order, and any 

such designation by a non-Party shall have the same force and effect, and create the 

same duties and obligations, as if made by one of the undersigned Parties hereto.

Any such designation shall also function as a consent by such producing Party to 

the authority of the Court in the Proceeding to resolve and conclusively determine 

any motion or other application made by any person or Party with respect to such 

designation, or any other matter otherwise arising under this Stipulation and 

Protective Order.

14.Nothing in this Stipulation and Protective Order shall be construed to preclude 

either Party from asserting in good faith that certain Confidential Materials require 

additional protection. The Parties shall meet and confer to agree upon the terms of 

such additional protection.

15.If, after execution of this Stipulation and Protective Order, any Confidential 

Materials submitted by a Designating party under the terms of this Stipulation and 

Protective Order is Disclosed by a non-Designating Party to any person other than 

in the manner authorized by this Stipulation and Protective Order, the nonDesignating Party responsible for the Disclosure shall bring all pertinent facts 

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relating to the Disclosure of such Confidential materials to the immediate attention 

of the Designating Party. 

16.This Stipulation and Protective Order is entered into without prejudice to the right 

of any Party to knowingly waive the applicability of this Stipulation and Protective 

Order to any Confidential Materials designated by that Party. If the Designating 

Party uses Confidential Materials in a non-Confidential manner, then the 

Designating Party shall advise that the designation no longer applies.

17.Before any materials produced in discovery, answers to interrogatories, responses to 

requests for admissions, deposition transcripts, or other documents which are 

designated as Confidential are filed with the Court for any purpose, the Parties shall 

submit to the Court a joint request to file such Confidential Materials under seal. 

The joint request shall comply with Local Rule 141. Before a party intends to 

submit such Confidential Materials with the Court, that party shall provide the 

Designating Party by email with a draft of the joint request and related documents. 

The Designating Party shall then provide its input within three court days of 

receiving the draft documents. The Parties shall then work together in good faith to 

file the joint request and take any other steps necessary to ensure that Confidential 

Materials remain out of the public domain until the court rules on the sealing 

request. 

18.Modification of the Protective Order by the Court. The Court may modify the terms 

and conditions of the Order for good cause or in the interest of justice.

19.The Parties shall meet and confer regarding the procedures for use of Confidential 

Materials at trial and shall move the Court for entry of an appropriate order.

20. Nothing in this Stipulation and Protective Order shall affect the admissibility into 

evidence of Confidential Materials, or abridge the rights of any person to seek 

judicial review or to pursue other appropriate judicial action with respect to any 

ruling made by the Court concerning the issue of the status of Protected Material. 

21.This Stipulation and Protective Order shall continue to be binding after the 

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conclusion of this Proceeding and all subsequent proceedings arising from this 

Proceeding, except that a Party may seek the written permission of the Designating 

Party or may move the Court for relief from the provisions of this Stipulation and 

Protective Order. The Court shall retain jurisdiction for a period of one (1) year 

after the conclusion of this action to enforce the terms of the Protective Order.

22.Upon written request made within thirty (30) days after the settlement or other 

termination of the Proceeding, the undersigned Parties shall have thirty (30) days to 

either: (a) promptly return to counsel for each Designating party all Confidential 

Materials and copies thereof (except that counsel for each Party may maintain in its 

files, in continuing compliance with the terms of this Stipulation and Protective 

Order, all work product, one copy of each pleading filed with the Court, and one 

copy of each deposition together with the exhibits marked at the deposition); (b) 

agree with counsel for the Designating party upon appropriate methods and 

certification of destruction or other disposition of such Confidential Materials; or 

(c) as to any Documents, Testimony, or other Information not addressed by subparagraphs (a) and (b), file a motion seeking a Court order regarding proper 

preservation of such Materials. To the extent permitted by law the Court shall retain 

continuing jurisdiction to review and rule upon the motion referred to in subparagraph (c) herein. 

23.After this Stipulation and Protective Order has been signed by counsel for all 

Parties, it shall be presented to the Court for entry. Counsel agree to be bound by 

the terms set forth herein with regard to any Confidential Materials that have been 

produced before the Court signs this Stipulation and Protective Order.

24.The Parties and all signatories to the Certification attached hereto as Exhibit A 

agree to be bound by this Stipulation and Protective Order pending its approval and 

entry by the Court. In the event that the Court modifies this Stipulation and 

Protective Order, or in the event that the Court enters a different Protective Order, 

the Parties agree to be bound by this Stipulation and Protective Order until such 

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time as the Court may enter such a different order. It is the Parties’ intent to be 

bound by the terms of this Stipulation and Protective Order pending its entry so as 

to allow for immediate production of Confidential Materials under the terms herein.

This Stipulation and Protective Order may be executed in counterparts.

Dated: May 15, 2020 By: /s/ Aliaksandra Valitskaya

Mark Romano

Timothy Whelan

Aliaksandra Valitskaya

Attorneys for Plaintiffs, 

ANGEL ISAIS and JOHNNY ISAIS

Dated: May 22, 2020 By: /s/ Leon V. Roubinian 

Leon V. Roubinian

Attorneys for Defendant,

FCA US LLC

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ORDER

Pursuant to the stipulation of the parties, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that:

1. The protective order is entered;

2. The parties are advised that pursuant to the Local Rules of the United States District 

Court, Eastern District of California, any documents which are to be filed under seal 

will require a written request which complies with Local Rule 141; and

3. The party making a request to file documents under seal shall be required to show 

good cause for documents attached to a nondispositive motion or compelling reasons 

for documents attached to a dispositive motion. Pintos v. Pacific Creditors Ass’n, 605 

F.3d 665, 677-78 (9th Cir. 2009). 

IT IS SO ORDERED.

Dated: May 26, 2020 

UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

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EXHIBIT A

CERTIFICATION REGARDING CONFIDENTIAL DISCOVERY MATERIALS

I hereby acknowledge that I, [Name], 

[Position and Employer], am about to 

receive Confidential Materials supplied in connection with the Proceeding, ANGEL ISAIS 

and JOHNNY ISAIS v. FCA US LLC, United States District Court for the Eastern District 

of California Case No.19-CV-01312-DAD-SAB . I certify that I understand that the 

Confidential Materials are provided to me subject to the terms and restrictions of the 

Stipulation and Protective Order filed in this Proceeding. I have been given a copy of the 

Stipulation and Protective Order, I have read it, and I agree to be bound by its terms. 

I understand that Confidential Materials, as defined in this Stipulation and 

Protective Order, including any notes or other records that may be made regarding any 

such materials, shall not be Disclosed to anyone except as expressly permitted by the 

Stipulation and Protective Order. I will not copy or use, except solely for the purposes of 

this Proceeding, any Confidential Materials obtained pursuant to this Protective Order, 

except as provided therein or otherwise ordered by the Court in the Proceeding.

I further understand that I am to retain all copies of all Confidential Materials 

provided to me in the Proceeding in a secure manner, and that all copies of such Materials 

are to remain in my personal custody until termination of my participation in this 

Proceeding, whereupon the copies of such Materials will be returned to counsel who 

provided me with such Materials.

I declare under penalty of perjury, under the laws of the State of California, that the 

foregoing is true and correct. 

Executed this day of _________, 2020 at , 

California. 

By: 

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