South Carolina Code of Regulations › Chapter 19 - STATE BUDGET AND CONTROL BOARD › Article 4 - OFFICE OF GENERAL SERVICES › Section 19-445.2200 - Administrative Review Protective Orders

Current through Register Vol. 48, No. 6, June 28, 2024
A. At the request of any party or on its own
			 initiative, the appropriate chief procurement officer or the Procurement Review
			 Panel may issue a protective order controlling the treatment of protected
			 information for purposes of a protest or other proceeding currently pending
			 before it. Such information may include any information exempt from public
			 disclosure by law, such as information exempt from disclosure under Sections
			 11-35-410
			 and
			 30-4-40.
			 The protective order shall establish procedures for application for access to
			 protected information and for identification and safeguarding of that
			 information. Because a protective order serves to facilitate the pursuit of a
			 protest or other administrative proceeding by a protester through counsel, it
			 is the responsibility of protester's counsel to request that a protective order
			 be issued and to submit timely applications for admission under that order.
			 Protected information received by a person pursuant to a protective order
			 issued under this regulation shall be released only pursuant to and in
			 compliance with the protective order.
B. A protective order may not prohibit a
			 public body from releasing information which the public body must release under
			 applicable law. A protective order may not require the release of any public
			 record that a public body is prohibited from releasing by law. Issuance of a
			 protective order does not preclude a party from asserting any legally
			 cognizable privilege to withhold any document or information.
C. Before being permitted to view any
			 protected information, counsel and any consultants retained by counsel who will
			 review or utilize any protected information must file an application for access
			 in accordance with the conditions of the protective order. To be entitled to
			 access, an applicant must establish that the applicant is not involved in
			 competitive decision-making for any firm that could gain a competitive
			 advantage from access to the protected information and that there will be no
			 significant risk of inadvertent disclosure of protected information. A
			 consultant will not be permitted access to protected information if he or she
			 is employed by a party to the action or is working under a contract to a party.
			 Objections to granting an applicant access to protected information must be in
			 writing and filed within two business days after the person receives a copy of
			 the application for access.
D. Any
			 violation of the terms of a protective order may result in the imposition of
			 such sanctions as the CPO or Procurement Review Panel, as applicable, deems
			 appropriate, including referral to appropriate bar associations or other
			 disciplinary bodies and restricting the individual's practice before the CPO or
			 Panel. A business aggrieved by violation of a protective order may seek
			 enforcement of such order in any available judicial or administrative
			 forum.