In the United States Court of 

Federal Claims 

GENERAL ORDER 

Procedures for the Filing, Service, and Management of 

Highly Sensitive Documents 

In response to recent disclosures of wide-spread breaches 

of both private sector and government computer systems, federal 

courts are immediately adding new security procedures to protect 

highly sensitive documents filed with the courts. The court 

finds that pursuant to Rule 5(d)(3)(A) of the Rules of the United 

States Court of Federal Claims (RCFC), good cause exists to 

require all parties to file certain highly sensitive documents 

outside of the court’s electronic filing system. Therefore, 

effective immediately and until further order of the court, 

IT IS ORDERED THAT the filing of certain highly 

sensitive documents shall be subject to the procedures and 

requirements set forth below. This General Order supersedes 

any and all inconsistent provisions in the RCFC or other general 

orders of this court. 

(1) Documents subject to this order: 

a. The following types of documents are deemed highly 

sensitive documents (HSDs): any document 

containing information that involves matters of 

national security, foreign sovereign interests, or 

cybersecurity; a document that contains government 

enforcement information; a document describing 

closely held trade secrets; or a document that 

implicates the reputational interests of the United 

States.

b. The following types of documents generally are not 

considered HSDs: any document containing 

proprietary, source-selection, or similar confidential 

information; any document containing medical 

records or personal identifiers as defined in RCFC 5.2; 

and most sealed filings. 
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c. Any dispute as to whether a document is an HSD shall 

be resolved by the presiding judge or, when no 

presiding judge is assigned, the chief judge. 

(2) Filing of authorized HSDs: A party filing an HSD pursuant 

to a court order shall submit to the Clerk of Court’s office the 

HSD, the certificate of service, and a copy of the court order 

authorizing the treatment of that document as an HSD. To 

the extent possible, the submission shall be in the form of an 

electronic copy on a secure electronic device (as described in 

paragraph (6) below); otherwise, the submission may be in the 

form of two paper copies. 

a. The secure electronic device (or paper copies) shall be 

submitted to the Clerk of Court’s office in a sealed 

envelope marked “HIGHLY SENSITIVE 

DOCUMENT.” The outside of the envelope shall 

be affixed with a copy of the HSD’s caption page (with 

highly sensitive information redacted). 

b. The filing party shall serve the HSD on the other 

parties by any manner specified in RCFC 5(b)(2), 

except for service via the court’s electronic filing 

system. 

c. The Clerk of Court’s office will make an informational 

docket entry in the court’s electronic filing system 

indicating that the HSD was filed with the court and 

will maintain the HSD in a secure filing system that is 

separate from the court’s electronic filing system. 

(3) Filing of motions to treat a document as an HSD: A party 

shall file a motion to treat a document as an HSD pursuant 

to the RCFC and Amended General Order No. 2 (Dec. 23, 

2020), except that a copy of the proposed HSD shall not be 

filed electronically in the court’s electronic filing system or 

submitted by e-mail to the pro se case filings e-mail box. 

a. The motion shall explain why the proposed document 

constitutes an HSD under the criteria set out in 

paragraph (1) above or why it should otherwise be 

subject to the heightened protection for HSDs. 

b. As soon as practicable after the motion is filed, the 

filing party shall submit to the Clerk of Court’s office 

the HSD sought to be filed along with a certificate of 

service. To the extent possible, the submission shall be 

in the form of an electronic copy on a secure 
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electronic device (as described in paragraph (6) 

below); otherwise, the submission may be in the form 

of two paper copies. The secure electronic device (or 

paper copies) shall be packaged as specified in 

paragraph (2) above. 

c. The filing party shall serve the proposed HSD on the 

other parties as specified in paragraph (2) above. 

d. The court will issue an order on the motion and, if 

granted, an informational entry will be made on the 

case docket indicating that the HSD has been filed 

with the court. 

d. The Clerk of Court’s office will maintain the HSD in 

a secure filing system that is separate from the court’s 

electronic filing system. 

(4) Service of highly sensitive court orders: If the court 

determines that a court order contains information reflected 

in an HSD, the Clerk of Court’s office will make an 

informational docket entry in the court’s electronic filing 

system indicating that the order was filed, will maintain the 

order in a secure filing system that is separate from the court’s 

electronic filing system, and will serve paper copies of the 

order on the parties via mail. Within seven (7) days, the 

presiding judge will publicly file a copy of the order in the 

court’s electronic filing system, with any information from the 

HSD redacted. 

(5) Removal of existing HSDs from the court’s electronic 

filing system: 

a. On motion of a party or on its own motion, the court 

may determine that a document, or any portion of it, 

that has been filed electronically is highly sensitive and 

direct that the HSD be removed from the court’s 

electronic filing system and maintained by the Clerk of 

Court’s office in a secure filing system that is separate 

from the court’s electronic filing system. 

b. A party’s motion to remove an HSD from the court’s 

electronic filing system shall explain why such 

document is highly sensitive under the criteria set out 

in paragraph (1) above or why it should otherwise be 

subject to the heightened protection for HSDs. 
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(6) Secure Electronic Device. An HSD must be filed using the 

following protections: (i) an encrypted electronic storage 

device that meets Federal Information Processing Standard 

(FIPS) 140-2; (ii) a personal identification number (PIN); and 

(iii) a mechanism that deletes the data in the HSD after more 

than ten (10) failed attempts to access it. The required access 

PIN must be communicated to Clerk of Court’s office 

separately via other secure means such as an encrypted e-mail 

or secure paper mail. The party must contact the Clerk of 

Court’s office in advance of filing an HSD. 

(7) Questions about HSD Filing Procedures. Any questions 

about how an HSD should be filed with the court pursuant 

to this General Order should be directed to the Clerk of 

Court’s office at (202) 357-6406. 

IT IS SO ORDERED. 

 

 ELENI M. ROUMEL 

 Chief Judge 

 

January 12, 2021 

Washington, D.C.