Document ID: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-caed-2_13-cv-01380/USCOURTS-caed-2_13-cv-01380-0/pdf.json

Parties Involved:
Diana Bernhardt
Plaintiff
State of California, Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (High Desert State Prison)
Defendant

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Stipulated Protective Order (2:13-cv-01380-KJM-AC) 

KAMALA D. HARRIS

Attorney General of California 

JUDITH A. RECCHIO

Supervising Deputy Attorney General 

SCOTT A. SOMMERDORF

Deputy Attorney General 

State Bar No. 241747 

1300 I Street, Suite 125 

P.O. Box 944255 

Sacramento, CA 94244-2550 

Telephone: (916) 323-3830 

Fax: (916) 324-5567 

E-mail: Scott.Sommerdorf@doj.ca.gov 

Attorneys for Defendants 

Employment Litigation

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA 

EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 

SACRAMENTO DIVISION 

DIANA BERNHARDT, 

Plaintiff,

v. 

STATE OF CALIFORNIA, 

DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS AND 

REHABILITATION (HIGH DESERT 

STATE PRISON), 

Defendant.

Case No. 2:13-cv-01380-KJM-AC 

STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER 

Judge: The Honorable Kimberly J. 

Mueller 

Trial Date: 

Action Filed: July 11, 2013 

STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER

WHEREAS, Plaintiff Diana Bernhardt and Defendant California Department of Corrections 

and Rehabilitation (“the Parties”) have, through counsel stipulated to the entry of a Protective 

Order to prevent the unnecessary dissemination or disclosure of certain documents, transcripts, 

records, and other things that constitute or contain confidential, privileged, or otherwise protected 

information; and 

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Stipulated Protective Order (2:13-cv-01380-KJM-AC) 

WHEREAS, the Parties have stipulated that good cause exists for the entry of a Protective 

Order to protect against improper disclosure of confidential or protected information produced or 

disclosed in the above-captioned civil action (“the Litigation”). 

IT IS HEREBY STIPULATED AND AGREED, SUBJECT TO THE APPROVAL AND 

ORDER OF THE COURT, as follows: 

1. Definitions: As used in this Stipulated Protective Order, these terms have the 

following meanings: 

 (a) “Confidential Information” means information designated in accordance with 

Paragraph 2; 

 (b) “Designating Party” means the party or group of parties that designates material 

or materials as “Confidential Information” and anyone who owns or controls said information, or 

material controlled to by a non-party to the Litigation that contains Confidential Information; 

 (c) “Material” or “materials” includes all documents, transcripts, records, and 

discoverable information (in oral, written, or electronic forms) produced in the Litigation, 

including without limitation, all testimony adduced at depositions, all documents or things 

responsive to requests for the production of documents and things, all answers to interrogatories, 

all responses to requests for admissions, and all other discovery requests made in accordance with 

the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and applicable court rules, as well as hearing and trial 

transcripts, matters in evidence, and any other information furnished directly or indirectly, by or 

on behalf of any party to this litigation or any third party; 

 (d) “Agreement to be Bound By Protective Order” means an executed document in 

the form attached as Exhibit A; 

 (e) “Party” means: 

 (i.) Diana Bernhardt and her counsel; and 

 (ii.) California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (“CDCR”) and 

all affiliated entities, officers, directors, management employees, human resources and employee 

relations professionals, finance and payroll personnel, staff counsel, and counsel of record in this 

action. 

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Stipulated Protective Order (2:13-cv-01380-KJM-AC) 

 (f) “Requesting Party” means the party that requests the disclosure of 

“Confidential Information.” 

 (g) “Receiving Party” means the party that receives the disclosure of “Confidential 

Information.” 

2. Designations. 

 (a) Designation of Confidential Information or Items Produced by a Party: A party 

may designate any material “CONFIDENTIAL” for protection under this Stipulated Protective 

Order where that material constitutes or discloses “Confidential Information.” This includes any 

material that a Designating Party, in good faith, contends constitutes or contains information that 

is: (a) confidential, sensitive, or potentially invasive of any individual’s privacy or protected 

health information, including medical, psychiatric, and other patient information; (b) personnel 

information; (c) information which, if disclosed to the public, could be used to compromise the 

operation or safety of High Desert State Prison or other facilities operated by CDCR; (d) 

information which contains the identity or picture of inmates in the CDCR system; and (e) other 

such information that the Requesting Party and non-parties would not have access to but for this 

litigation. 

 (b) Given the highly sensitive nature of information which will or may be disclosed 

in this matter and the potential need for filing CONFIDENTIAL information under seal, an 

enforceable, Court approved protective order is necessary. Such an order is necessary to permit 

the parties to submit redacted information to the Court consistent with the needs for protection 

outlined herein. The categories in the preceding paragraph have a particularized need for 

protection because: (a) this case involves alleged injury to Plaintiff’s psyche and psychiatric 

treatment of a sensitive nature; (b) this case involves peace officers whose personnel information 

is entitled to extensive protection under California Law. Disclosure of peace officer personnel 

information may lead to unnecessary annoyance and harassment to said officers and could also 

create safety issues; (c) the allegations in this matter involve alleged wrongdoing involving the In 

Service Training Office at High Desert State Prison. As such, information in this case relates to 

the operation of High Desert State Prison including training regarding safety practices and 

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Stipulated Protective Order (2:13-cv-01380-KJM-AC) 

responding to emergency situations. Public knowledge of said practices and responses could 

compromise inmate, officer, and public safety; (d) some of the training information in this case 

contains confidential inmate information. Said information, if disclosed to the public, could be 

used to annoy, harass, or jeopardize the safety of said inmates; (e) disclosure of information 

regarding the operation of High Desert State Prison or other training information, though not 

directly implicating inmate, officer, or public safety, could, if disclosed, be used to undermine 

prison operations or the successful training of CDCR employees. 

 (c) Confidential Information Received from a Third Party: Any documents, 

material, or information produced by a non-party to a Party in response to a subpoena in this 

action may be designated as Confidential Information if said document, material, or information 

falls within the categories listed in paragraph 2(a) above. 

3. Use of Information. All materials containing Confidential Information shall be used 

solely for the purpose of the Litigation, including any appeal thereof, unless otherwise agreed to, 

in writing, by a Designating Party, or directed by a court of competent jurisdiction. Prohibited 

uses of information include, but are not limited to, use of “Confidential Information” for other 

litigation or disclosure to the media. 

4. Access to Confidential Information. In addition to each Party and its counsel, access 

to any Confidential Information may be provided to the following: 

 (a) The Court, its officers (including the jury) and supporting personnel, and any 

appellate court to which an appeal may be taken or in which review is sought, and its officers and 

supporting personnel; 

 (b) Counsel of record and their supervisors, associates, legal assistants, paralegals, 

investigators, and stenographic and clerical employees, so long as their duties and responsibilities 

require access to Confidential Information; 

 (c) Court reporters and videographers retained to transcribe or record testimony in 

the Litigation; 

 (d) Outside experts and consultant retained by a Party or its counsel for purposes of 

the Litigation, including their support, administrative, and clerical staff to the extent necessary to 

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Stipulated Protective Order (2:13-cv-01380-KJM-AC) 

assist the Party in the Litigation who have signed an “Agreement to Be Bound by Protective 

Order”; 

 (e) Witnesses in this action who have authored the Confidential Information or 

have personal knowledge of its contents and do not retain any documents containing the 

CONFIDENTIAL designation, and who have signed an “Agreement to Be Bound by Protective 

Order.” 

 (f) Mediators; and 

 (g) Any other person as to whom the Parties mutually agree in writing, so long as 

such person signs the “Agreement to Be Bound by Protective Order.” 

5. Effect of Designation 

 (a) The designation of information as CONFIDENTIAL shall constitute a 

representation that an attorney believes that there is a valid basis for such designation. The failure 

to designate information as CONFIDENTIAL may not be used against the producing party as an 

admission or concession that the designated information is or is not, in fact, confidential, 

privileged, or otherwise sensitive. 

6. No person receiving Confidential Information shall transfer, disclose, or 

communicate in any way the materials or contents of Confidential Information to any person 

other than those specified in Paragraph 4 and only as specified in this Stipulated Protective Order. 

7. Unless the Parties agree in writing to the contrary (by and through their attorneys), 

each person appropriately designated in accordance with Paragraph 4(d), (e), (f), and (g) to 

receive Confidential Information shall execute an “Agreement to Be Bound by Protective Order.” 

8. Use of Confidential Information at Deposition. All depositions or portions of 

depositions taken in the Litigation that contain Confidential Information may be designated as 

“CONFIDENTIAL” and thereby obtain the appropriate protections accorded said information 

under this Stipulated Protective Order. Confidentiality designations for depositions shall be made 

either on the record or by written notice to all parties within thirty days of receipt of the transcript. 

The deposition of any witness (or any portion of such deposition) that involves Confidential 

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Stipulated Protective Order (2:13-cv-01380-KJM-AC) 

Information shall be taken only in the presence of persons qualified to have access to Confidential 

Information. 

9. Inadvertent Failure to Designate Documents. Any party that inadvertently fails to 

identify Confidential Information as “CONFIDENTIAL” shall correct its failure by providing 

written notice of the error and substituted copies of the inadvertently produced documents. Any 

party receiving such inadvertently unmarked materials shall make reasonable efforts to retrieve 

materials distributed to persons not entitled to receive materials with the correct designation. 

10. Inadvertent or mistaken disclosure of Privileged Documents, Personnel Information, 

Inmate Information, Information Protected by Constitutional or Statutory Privacy Rights, or 

Information that Could be Used to Compromise the Operation or Safety of Any CDCR 

Institution. The inadvertent or mistaken production or disclosure of any material, document, or 

thing protected by any privilege or immunity recognized in the United States District Court for 

the Eastern District of California shall not operate as a waiver of said privilege or immunity. The 

inadvertent or mistaken production or disclosure of any document or thing which contains 

personnel information, inmate information, or information that could be used to compromise the 

operation or safety of any CDCR Institution shall not operate as a waiver of any lawful reason to 

withhold or redact said document. After learning of the inadvertent production or disclosure of 

the information discussed herein, the party who made the inadvertent production or disclosure 

must send to any receiving party a written request for the return or destruction of such documents 

or things. Said written request shall be accompanied by a proof of service. Upon receiving such 

a request, the receiving party shall immediately take all necessary steps to return or destroy such 

documents or things, including all copies and electronic copies, and make a written certification 

to the producing party of such compliance. If the receiving party disclosed the inadvertently 

produced document or thing before being notified by the producing party, it must take reasonable 

steps to retrieve the inadvertently produced document or thing. 

 (a) If the receiving party wishes to contest that any such material, document, or 

thing is not lawfully withheld, the receiving party shall so notify the producing party in writing 

when the document or thing is returned to the producing party. Said notification shall be 

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Stipulated Protective Order (2:13-cv-01380-KJM-AC) 

accompanied by a proof of service. Within ten days after receiving such notification, or within 

any other time period as confirmed in writing between the parties, the producing party shall 

provide to the requesting party a list identifying all such returned documents and things and 

stating the lawful basis for withholding the document or thing. Within ten days after receiving 

such a list, or within any other time period as confirmed in writing between the parties, and after 

the party has attempted to resolve the dispute through a meaningful meet-and-confer effort, the 

receiving party may file a motion to compel production of such documents or things. If such a 

motion is filed, the producing party shall have the burden of establishing that the documents or 

things in dispute are lawfully withheld or protected from disclosure. 

 (b) With respect to materials, documents, and things subsequently generated by a 

receiving party, which contain information derived from inadvertently produced documents and 

things, if the receiving party does not notify the producing party regarding an intention to contest 

the lawfulness of withholding the underlying document or thing, the receiving party shall 

immediately destroy or redact the derivative document or thing in a manner such that the 

derivative information cannot in any way be retrieved or reproduced. 

 (c) In no event shall the return or destruction of demanded documents be delayed 

or refused because of a receiving party’s objection to the demand or by the filing of a motion to 

compel. Until and unless such motion to compel is granted, the receiving party shall neither 

quote nor substantively reveal any privileged information contained within the documents or 

things at issue, either prior to or following their return. 

11. Filing “Confidential Information” with the Court. If a party wishes to file material or 

documents designated “CONFIDENTIAL” with the Court, said party must, no later than fifteen 

days prior to the date of filing, provide a notice of intent to file a document designated as 

CONFIDENTIAL to the designating party. Said notice must provide sufficient information to the 

party that designated the material CONFIDENTIAL to allow said party to seek approval for the 

filing to made under seal, including but not limited to, the information within the document or 

material that is relevant to the filing at issue. 

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Stipulated Protective Order (2:13-cv-01380-KJM-AC) 

If a party wishes to file material or documents designated “CONFIDENTIAL” with the 

Court, and the filing party did not provide at least fifteen days notice of intent to file 

CONFIDENTIAL information, all such materials or documents must still be submitted under seal 

in accordance with applicable Federal Law and Local Rules unless, prior to the filing, the parties 

agree in writing that said materials or documents need not be filed under seal. 

12. Challenges to Designation. Any party may request a change in the designation of 

documents or things designated “CONFIDENTIAL.” Such a request must be in writing and must 

provide the basis for the request. All such documents or things shall be treated as designated until 

a change is completed. If the requested change in designation is not agreed to, the party seeking 

the change may move for appropriate relief after meeting and conferring with opposing counsel. 

The party asserting that the material is subject to this agreement shall have the burden of 

establishing that the information in question falls within the definition of “Confidential 

Information.” 

13. Use of Independently-Obtained, Unrestricted, Public, or Produced Information. This 

Stipulated Protective Order shall not impose any restrictions on (a) the use or disclosure by a 

party of information or material properly obtained by the party independent of discovery or 

subpoena in the Litigation (even if such material is also obtained through discovery in the 

Litigation) or (b) a party from disclosing its own confidential information as it deems appropriate. 

14. Return or Destruction Upon Termination of the Litigation. Upon the termination of 

the Litigation, including any appeals, all documents and things designated “CONFIDENTIAL”, 

including all copies of such materials, shall be returned to the Designating Party or at the 

Designating Party’s instruction, destroyed. Any material designated “CONFIDENTIAL” 

included in any archive of said material shall remain subject to the provisions of this Order. All 

parties shall certify compliance with this paragraph in writing within ninety days of the 

termination of the Litigation. 

15. Modification of the Stipulated Protective Order. Any party may apply to the Court 

for a modification of this Stipulated Protective Order and nothing in this Stipulated Protective 

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Order shall be construed to prevent a party from seeking such modification or otherwise asserting 

other lawful privileges or protection available under the law. 

16. No waiver of claim or defense. No action taken in accordance with this Stipulated 

Protective Order shall be construed as a waiver of any claim or defense in the Litigation or of any 

position as to discoverability or admissibility of evidence. 

17. Subpoena or Court Order. If a requesting party is served with a subpoena or court 

order that would compel disclosure of any document, thing, or information designated by a 

producing party as “CONFIDENTIAL”, then no more than ten days after receiving the subpoena 

or order, unless otherwise provided by law, the requesting party must: (1) notify the Designating 

Party, in writing (by fax, email, or personal delivery) of the subpoena or order and include a copy 

of the subpoena or order with the notification; and (2) inform in writing the party that caused the 

subpoena or order to issue that some or all of the materials covered by the subpoena are subject to 

this Stipulated Protective Order. The purpose of these duties is to afford the Designating Party an 

opportunity to seek protection for its “Confidential Information” in the court from which the 

subpoena or order issued. The Designating Party shall bear the burden and expense of seeking 

protection in that court. Nothing in this provision authorizes or encourages a party to disobey a 

lawful directive from any Court. 

18. Injunctive Relief. If any person violates or threatens to violate the terms of this 

Stipulated Protective Order, the aggrieved party may immediately apply to obtain injunctive relief 

against any such person. 

19. Any Party may designate materials CONFIDENTIAL prior to the entry of an order 

approving this Stipulated Protective Order. Materials so designated will be treated as 

CONFIDENTIAL throughout the litigation regardless of the date of entry of said order. If this 

Stipulated Protective Order is rejected by the Court, each Party agrees to meet and confer in good 

faith to craft a Stipulated Protective Order to replace this order. In the interim, the parties agree 

to protect CONFIDENTIAL information to the fullest extent possible. 

20. The Parties agree that, in conjunction with or independent of the designation of 

materials CONFIDENTIAL, redactions necessary to prevent the dangers discussed in part 2(b)(b) 

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above (relating to the personal information of peace officers) may be made to disclosed material 

prior to the production of said material. Any party may request a change in the redaction of 

documents or things. Such a request must be in writing and must provide the basis for the 

request. If the requested redaction is not withdrawn or added by agreement, the party seeking the 

change may move for appropriate relief after meeting and conferring with opposing counsel. The 

party asserting that the material is lawfully redacted pursuant to this agreement shall have the 

burden of establishing that the information in question falls within the definition of “Confidential 

Information” or is otherwise lawfully withheld. 

21. Survival of Protective Order. The obligations imposed by this Stipulated Protective 

Order shall survive the termination of the Litigation. 

Dated: January 21, 2014 Respectfully Submitted, 

KAMALA D. HARRIS

Attorney General of California 

JUDITH A. RECCHIO

Supervising Deputy Attorney General 

 /S/ SCOTT A. SOMMERDORF

SCOTT A. SOMMERDORF

Deputy Attorney General 

Attorneys for Defendants 

Employment Litigation 

Dated: January 21, 2014 Respectfully Submitted, 

BRYANT WHITTEN, LLP 

 /s/ Shelley G. Bryant 

SHELLEY G. BRYANT, Attorneys for 

Plaintiff, Diana Bernhardt 

ORDER

IT IS SO ORDERED 

DATED: February 4, 2014 

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Stipulated Protective Order (2:13-cv-01380-KJM-AC) 

EXHIBIT A: AGREEMENT TO BE BOUND BY PROTECTIVE ORDER

I ____________________________ declare that: 

 I am currently employed by ________________________ located at 

______________________________ and my current job title is _________________________. 

I have read and believe I understand the terms of the Stipulated Protective Order filed in Diana 

Bernhardt v. California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Case No. 2:13-cv-01380-

KJM-AC. I agree to comply with and be bound by the provisions of the Stipulated Protective 

Order. I understand that any violation of the Stipulated Protective Order may subject me to 

sanctions by any court with the authority to enforce the order. I submit myself to the jurisdiction 

of the United States District Court, Eastern District of California for the purpose of enforcing or 

otherwise providing relief relating to the Stipulated Protective Order. 

 I agree to abide by the terms set forth as follows: 

I shall not divulge any material, copies of material, or information gained from material which is 

designated “CONFIDENTIAL” obtained in accordance with the Stipulated Protective Order, or 

the contents of such materials, to any person other than those specifically authorized by the 

Stipulated Protective Order. I shall not copy or use such materials except for the purposes of the 

Litigation and in accordance with the terms of the Stipulated Protective Order. As soon as is 

practical, but no later than thirty days after final termination of this litigation, I shall return any 

materials in my possession designated “CONFIDENTIAL” to the attorney from whom I received 

such materials. I shall also return to that attorney, at that time, all copies, excerpts, summaries, 

notes, digests, abstracts, indices, and any other document or thing relating to such materials. 

 I declare under penalty of perjury that the foregoing is true and correct. 

Dated: __________________ _________________________________ 

SA2013112160 

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