UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 

NORTHERN DISTRICT OF INDIANA 

HAMMOND DIVISION 

JOSEPH ELWELL, CRYSTAL ) 

ELWELL, DEBORAH BALDWIN, ) 

Individually and as custodian for her ) 

Minor children WM and AM, ) 

ROBERT BALDWIN, ) 

) Case No. 2:16-CV-158 

Plaintiffs, ) 

) 

v. ) 

) 

FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH OF ) 

HAMMOND, INDIANA, INC., ) 

) 

Defendant. ) 

ORDER 

This matter is before the court on the Agreed Motion for Entry of a Confidentiality and 

Protective Order [DE 33] filed by the parties on October 12, 2016. In light of the parties’ 

agreement and the court being fully advised in this matter, hereby GRANTS the motion and 

enters the following CONFIDENTIALITY AND PROTECTIVE ORDER: 

1. Scope. All materials produced or adduced in the course of discovery, including 

but not limited to initial disclosures, responses to discovery requests, deposition testimony and 

exhibits, and information derived directly therefrom (hereinafter collectively “documents”), shall 

be subject to this Order concerning Confidential Information as defined below. This Order is 

subject to the Local Rules of this District and the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure on matters of 

procedure and calculation of time periods. 

2. Confidential Information. As used in this Order, “Confidential Information” 

means information designated as “CONFIDENTIAL-SUBJECT TO PROTECTIVE ORDER” by 

the producing party that falls within one or more of the following categories: (a) information 

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protected from disclosure by statute; (b) information that reveals private and confidential 

financial information of First Baptist Church of Hammond, Indiana, Inc; Jack Schaap; Joseph 

Elwell; Crystal Elwell; Deborah Baldwin; Ms. Baldwin’s minor children WM and AM; and/or 

Robert Baldwin, including but not limited to balance sheets, income, assets, liabilities, donations, 

tithes, loans, gifts, “love offerings” and other monies received; (c) communications, 

correspondence, e-mails and/or facsimiles that contain private and confidential financial 

information of First Baptist Church of Hammond, Indiana, Inc.; Jack Schaap; Joseph Elwell; 

Crystal Elwell; Deborah Baldwin; Ms. Baldwin’s minor children WM and AM; and/or Robert 

Baldwin; (d) personal identity information; and (e) personnel or employment records of a person 

who is not a party to this case; 

Information or documents that are available to the public may not be designated as 

Confidential Information. 

3. Designation. 

a. A party may designate a document as Confidential Information for 

protection under this Order by placing or affixing the words 

“CONFIDENTIAL – SUBJECT TO PROTECTIVE ORDER” on the 

document and on all copies in a manner that will not interfere with the 

legibility of the document. As used in this Order, “copies” includes 

electronic images, duplicates, extracts, summaries or descriptions that 

contain the Confidential Information. The marking “CONFIDENTIAL – 

SUBJECT TO PROTECTIVE ORDER” shall be applied prior to or at the 

time of the documents are produced or disclosed. Applying the marking 

“CONFIDENTIAL – SUBJECT TO PROTECTIVE ORDER” to a 

document does not mean that the document has any status or protection by 

statute or otherwise except to the extent and for the purposes of this Order. 

Any copies that are made of any documents marked “CONFIDENTIAL – 

SUBJECT TO PROTECTIVE ORDER” shall also be so marked, except 

that indices, electronic databases or lists of documents that do not contain 

substantial portions or images of the text of marked documents and do not 

otherwise disclose the substance of the Confidential Information are not 

required to be marked. 

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b. The designation of a document as Confidential Information is a 

certification by an attorney that the document contains Confidential 

Information as defined in this order. 

4. Depositions. 

a. Deposition testimony is protected by this Order only if designated as 

“CONFIDENTIAL – SUBJECT TO PROTECTIVE ORDER” on the 

record at the time the testimony is taken. Such designation shall be 

specific as to the portions that contain Confidential Information. 

Deposition testimony so designated shall be treated as Confidential 

Information protected by this Order until fourteen days after delivery of 

the transcript by the court reporter to any party or the witness. Within 

fourteen (14) days after delivery of the transcript, a designating party may 

serve a Notice of Designation to all parties of record identifying the 

specific portions of the transcript that are designated Confidential 

Information, and thereafter those portions identified in the Notice of 

Designation shall be protected under the terms of this Order. The failure 

to serve a timely Notice of Designation waives any designation of 

deposition testimony as Confidential Information that was made on the 

record of the deposition, unless otherwise ordered by the Court. 

5. Protection of Confidential Material. 

a. General Protections. Confidential Information shall not be used or 

disclosed by the parties, counsel for the parties or any other persons 

identified in subparagraph (b) for any purpose whatsoever other than in 

this litigation, including any appeal thereof. 

b. Limited Third-Party Disclosures. The parties and counsel for the parties 

shall not disclose or permit the disclosure of any Confidential Information 

to any third person or entity except as set-forth in subparagraphs (1)-(9). 

Subject to these requirements, the following categories of persons may be 

allowed to review Confidential Information: 

(1) Counsel. Counsel for the parties and employees of counsel who 

have responsibility for the preparation and trial of the action; 

(2) Parties. Individual parties and employees of a party but only to 

the extent counsel determines in good faith that the employee’s 

assistance is reasonably necessary to the conduct of the litigation in 

which the information is disclosed; 

(3) The Court and its personnel; 

(4) Court Reporters and Recorders. Court reporters and recorders 

engaged for depositions; 

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(5) Contractors. Those persons specifically engaged for the limited 

purpose of making copies of documents or organizing or 

processing documents, including outside vendors hired to process 

electronically stored documents; 

(6) Consultants and Experts. Consultants, investigators, or experts 

employed by the parties or counsel for the parties to assist in the 

preparation and trial of this action but only after such persons have 

completed the certification contained in Attachment A, 

Acknowledgment of Understanding and Agreement to Be Bound; 

and 

(7) Witnesses at depositions. During their depositions, witnesses in 

this action to whom disclosure is contemplated by counsel as being 

reasonably necessary. Witnesses shall not retain a copy of 

documents containing Confidential Information, except witnesses 

may receive a copy of all exhibits marked at their depositions in 

connection with review of the transcripts. Pages of transcribed 

deposition testimony or exhibits to depositions that are designated 

as Confidential Information pursuant to the process set out in this 

Order must be separately bound by the court reporter and may not 

be disclosed to anyone except as permitted under this Order. 

(8) Author or recipient. The author or recipient of the document (not 

including the person who received the document in the course of 

the litigation); and 

(9) Others by Consent. Other persons only by written consent of the 

producing party or upon order of the Court and on such conditions 

as may be agreed or ordered. 

c. Control of Documents. Counsel for the parties shall make reasonable 

efforts to prevent unauthorized or inadvertent disclosure of Confidential 

Information. Counsel shall maintain the originals of the forms signed by 

persons acknowledging their obligations under this Order for a period of 

three years after the termination of the case. 

6. Inadvertent Failure to Designate. An inadvertent failure to designate a 

document as Confidential Information does not, standing alone, waive the right to so designate 

the document; provided, however, that a failure to serve a timely Notice of Designation of 

deposition testimony as required by this Order, even if inadvertent, waives any protection for 

deposition testimony. If a party designates a document as Confidential Information after it was 

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initially produced, the receiving party, on notification of the designation, must make a reasonable 

effort to assure that the document is treated in accordance with the provisions of this Order. No 

party shall be found to have violated this Order for failing to maintain the confidentiality of 

material during a time when that material has not been designated Confidential Information, even 

where the failure to so designate was inadvertent and where the material is subsequently 

designated Confidential Information. 

7. Filing of Confidential Information. This Order does not, by itself, authorize the 

filing of any document under seal. Any party wishing to file a document designated as 

Confidential Information in connection with a motion, brief or other submission to the Court 

must comply with Local Rule 26-2. 

8. No Greater Protection of Specific Documents. Except on privilege grounds not 

addressed by this Order, no party may withhold information from discovery on the ground that it 

requires protection greater than that afforded by this Order unless the party moves for an order 

providing such special protection. 

9. Challenges by a Party to Designation as Confidential Information. The 

designation of any material or document as Confidential Information is subject to challenge by 

any party. The following procedure shall apply to any such challenge. 

a. Meet and Confer. A party challenging the designation of Confidential 

Information must do so in good faith and must begin the process by 

conferring directly with counsel for the designating party. In conferring, 

the challenging party must explain the basis for its belief that the 

confidentiality designation was not proper and must give the designating 

party an opportunity to review the designated material, to reconsider the 

designation, and, if no change in designation is offered, to explain the 

basis for the designation. The designating party must respond to the 

challenge within five (5) business days. 

b. Judicial Intervention. A party that elects to challenge a confidentiality 

designation may file and serve a motion that identifies the challenged 

material and sets forth in detail the basis for the challenge. Each such 

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motion must be accompanied by a competent declaration that affirms that 

the movant has complied with the meet and confer requirements of this 

procedure. The burden of persuasion in any such challenge proceeding 

shall be on the designating party. Until the Court rules on the challenge, 

all parties shall continue to treat the materials as Confidential Information 

under the terms of this Order. 

10. Action by the Court. Applications to the Court for an order relating to materials 

or documents designated Confidential Information shall be by motion. Nothing in this Order or 

any action or agreement of a party under this Order limits the Court’s power to make orders 

concerning the disclosure of documents produced in discovery or at trial. 

11. Use of Confidential Documents or Information at Trial. Nothing in this Order 

shall be construed to affect the admissibility of any document, material, or information at any 

trial or hearing. A party that intends to present or which anticipates that another party may 

present Confidential information at a hearing or trial shall bring that issue to the Court’s and 

parties’ attention by motion or in a pretrial memorandum without disclosing the Confidential 

Information. The Court may thereafter make such orders as are necessary to govern the use of 

such documents or information at trial. 

12. Confidential Information Subpoenaed or Ordered Produced in Other 

Litigation. 

a. If a receiving party is served with a subpoena or an order issued in other 

litigation that would compel disclosure of any material or document 

designated in this action as Confidential Information, the receiving party 

must so notify the designating party, in writing, immediately and in no 

event more than three (3) court days after receiving the subpoena or order. 

Such notification must include a copy of the subpoena or court order. 

b. The receiving party also must immediately inform in writing the party 

who caused the subpoena or order to issue in the other litigation that some 

or all of the material covered by the subpoena or order is the subject of 

this Order. In addition, the receiving party must deliver a copy of this 

Order promptly to the party in the other action that caused the subpoena to 

issue. 

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c. The purpose of imposing these duties is to alert the interested persons to 

the existence of this Order and to afford the designating party in this case 

an opportunity to try to protect its Confidential Information in the court 

from which the subpoena or order issued. The designating party shall bear 

the burden and the expense of seeking protection in that court of its 

Confidential Information, and nothing in these provisions should be 

construed as authorizing a receiving party in this action to disobey a 

lawful directive from another court. The obligations set forth in this 

paragraph remain in effect while the party has in its possession, custody or 

control Confidential Information by the other party to this case. 

13. Challenges by Members of the Public to Sealing Orders. A party or interested 

member of the public has a right to challenge the sealing of particular documents that have been 

filed under seal, and the party asserting confidentiality will have the burden of demonstrating the 

propriety of filing under seal. 

14. Obligations on Conclusion of Litigation. 

a. Unless otherwise agreed or ordered, this Order shall remain in force after 

dismissal or entry of final judgment not subject to further appeal. 

b. Within thirty (30) days after dismissal or entry of final judgment not 

subject to further appeal, all Confidential Information and documents 

marked “CONFIDENTIAL - SUBJECT TO PROTECTIVE ORDER” 

under this Order, including copies as defined in 3(a), shall be returned to 

the producing party unless: (1) the document has been offered into 

evidence or filed without restriction as to disclosure; (2) the parties agree 

to destruction in lieu of return; or (3) as to documents bearing the 

notations, summations, or other mental impressions of the receiving party, 

that party elects to destroy the documents and certifies to the producing 

party that it has done so. Notwithstanding the above requirements to 

return or destroy documents, counsel may retain attorney work product, 

including an index which refers or relates to designated Confidential 

Information so long as that work product does not duplicate verbatim. 

Substantial portions of Confidential Information, and one complete set of 

all documents filed with the Court including those filed under seal. Any 

retained Confidential Information shall continue to be protected under this 

Order. An attorney may use his or her work product in subsequent 

litigation provided that its use does not disclose or use Confidential 

Information. 

c. Deletion of Documents Filed under Seal from ECF System. Filings under 

seal shall be deleted from the ECF system only upon order of the Court. 

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15. Order Subject to Modification. This Order shall be subject to modification by 

the Court on its own initiative or on motion of a party or any other person with standing 

concerning the subject matter. 

16. No Prior Judicial Determination. This Order is entered based on the 

representations and agreements of the parties and for the purpose of facilitating discovery. 

Nothing herein shall be construed or presented as a judicial determination that any document or 

material designated Confidential Information by counselor the parties is entitled to protection 

under Rule 26(c) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure or otherwise until such time as the 

Court may rule on a specific document or issue. 

17. Persons Bound. This Order shall take effect when entered and shall be binding 

upon all counsel of record and their law firms, the parties, and persons made subject to this Order 

by its terms. 

 ENTERED this 14th day of October, 2016. 

 /s/ Andrew P. Rodovich 

 United States Magistrate Judge 

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