Northern District of Illinois Sealing & Redaction Procedures

Confidential/Highly Confidential documents must be clearly marked on their face.

Source text: A person designates information in a document or thing as Confidential or Highly Confidential by clearly and prominently marking it on its face as “CONFIDENTIAL” or “HIGHLY CONFIDENTIAL.”

Deposition testimony must be designated as Confidential/Highly Confidential on record or within 14 days of transcript receipt.

Source text: A person designates information in deposition testimony as Confidential or Highly Confidential by stating on the record at the deposition that the information is Confidential or Highly Confidential or by advising the opposing party and the stenographer and videographer in writing, within fourteen days after receipt of the deposition transcript, that the information is Confidential or Highly Confidential.

Disputed confidentiality designations must be resolved through meet-and-confer; producer bears burden of proof.

Source text: If a party disputes a producer’s designation of information as Confidential or Highly Confidential, the party shall notify the producer in writing of the basis for the dispute, identifying the specific document[s] or thing[s] as to which the designation is disputed and proposing a new designation for such materials. The party and the producer shall then meet and confer to attempt to resolve the dispute without involvement of the Court. If they cannot resolve the dispute, the proposed new designation shall be applied fourteen (14) days after notice of the dispute unless within that fourteen day period the producer files a motion with the Court to maintain the producer’s designation. The producer bears the burden of proving that the information is properly designated as Confidential or Highly Confidential.

Recipient must promptly notify producer when receiving compulsory process for confidential information.

Source text: If a recipient of Confidential or Highly Confidential information receives compulsory process (e.g., subpoena) commanding production of documents, ESI, or things containing a producer’s Confidential or Highly Confidential information, the recipient must promptly notify the producer, in addition to following the other provisions of this section.

No document may be filed under seal without prior court permission.

Source text: This protective order does not, by itself, authorize the filing of any document under seal. No document may be filed under seal without prior leave of court. A party wishing to file under seal a document containing Confidential or Highly Confidential information must move the Court, consistent with Local Rule 26.2(b) and prior to the due date for the document, for permission to file the document under seal.

Party must notify producer 5 business days before filing document containing confidential information.

Source text: If a party wishes to file in the public record a document that another producer has designated as Confidential or Highly Confidential, the party must advise the producer of the document no later than five business days before the document is due to be filed, so that the producer may move the Court to require the document to be filed under seal.

Sealed documents must include cover sheet with case caption, title, order date, and attorney signature.

Source text: Pursuant to Local Rule 5.8, any document filed under seal must be accompanied by a cover sheet disclosing (i) the caption of the case, including the case number; (ii) the title “Restricted Document Pursuant to Local Rule 26.2;” (iii) a statement that the document is filed as restricted in accordance with a court order and the date of the order; and (iv) the signature of the attorney of record filing the document.

Default protective order in Appendix B effective upon initial disclosures; modifications allowed for good cause without delaying disclosures.

Source text: The protective order found in LPR Appendix B shall be deemed to be in effect as of the date for each party's Initial Disclosures. Any party may move the Court to modify the Appendix B protective order for good cause. The filing of such a motion does not affect the requirement for or timing of any of the disclosures required by the LPR.

AI models, inputs, and outputs derived from Confidential Information are deemed Confidential and restricted to use in this litigation.

Source text: Finally, any LLM or AI models, AI inputs, and any AI outputs developed using Confidential Information produced in this litigation are deemed Confidential and cannot be used for any purpose other than prosecuting or defending this litigation.

This Order does not authorize filing under seal; parties must comply with LR 26.2 to file Confidential Information under seal.

Source text: 7. Filing of Confidential Information. This Order does not authorize the filing of any document under seal. Any party wishing to file a document designated as Confidential Information under seal in connection with a motion, brief or other submission to the Court must comply with LR 26.2. Parties must use

Parties may not withhold discovery information for protection greater than this Order without moving for a special protection order.

Source text: No party may withhold information from discovery, unless privilege is asserted, on the ground that it requires protection greater than that afforded by this Order without the party moving for an order requiring such special protection.

Challenged Confidential Information must remain treated as confidential until court rules.

Source text: However, until the Court rules on the challenge, the parties must continue to treat the challenged materials as Confidential Information.

Parties must raise Confidential Information use at trial via motion or pretrial memorandum without disclosing the information.

Source text: A party that intends to present or that anticipates that another party may present Confidential information at a hearing or trial must bring that issue to the Court’s and parties’ attention by motion or in a pretrial memorandum without disclosing the Confidential Information.

Any party or interested member of the public may challenge the sealing of documents, with the party asserting confidentiality bearing the burden of proving the sealing is proper.

Source text: A party or interested member of the public has a right to challenge the sealing of documents that have been filed under seal, and the party asserting confidentiality has the burden of demonstrating the propriety of filing under seal.

Obligations regarding Confidential Information apply for as long as a party has possession, custody, or control of such information.

Source text: The obligations set forth in this paragraph remain in effect while the party has in its possession, custody, or control Confidential Information of the other party to this case.

Confidential Information and documents marked CONFIDENTIAL-SUBJECT TO PROTECTIVE ORDER must be returned to the producing party within 63 days of final judgment or dismissal, with specified exceptions.

Source text: Within 63 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 Paragraph 3(a), must 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 to the extent practicable in lieu of return; 5 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.

This Order does not authorize filing documents under seal; parties seeking to file Confidential Information under seal must comply with LR 26.2.

Source text: This Order does not authorize the filing of any document under seal. Any party wishing to file a document designated as Confidential Information under seal in connection with a motion, brief or other submission to the Court must comply with LR 26.2.

Parties must treat challenged confidential materials as Confidential Information until the Court rules on the challenge.

Source text: However, until the Court rules on the challenge, the parties must continue to treat the challenged materials as Confidential Information.

Court approval required before filing any document under seal or as restricted.

Source text: No filing under seal, or any other designation as a restricted document, is to be permitted without previously-obtained court approval (see Citizens First Nat'l Bank v. Cincinnati Ins. Co., 178 F.3d 943 (7th Cir. 1999)).

Parties cannot amend protective order provisions regarding court approval or document return without court approval.

Source text: If the protective order contains any provision that would permit its amendment by agreement of the parties without requiring court approval, that power of amendment cannot extend to the subjects covered in paragraphs 1 and 2.

Sealed/restricted documents may be returned within 63 days after case closure; otherwise become public.

Source text: After the case is closed in the District Court (this requirement differs from L.R.26.2(e), which speaks of the case's 'final disposition including appeals'), the parties may obtain the return of any previously-sealed or previously-restricted documents by a motion filed within a specified time period after the case is closed. Counsel are free to agree on that specified time period, but they should not designate more than a 63-day period. Any documents that are not so withdrawn will become part of the public case file, and the protective order must so provide.

Protective order entered under FRCP 26(c)(1) for trade secrets and confidential information.

Source text: The Court enters the following protective order pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(c)(1).

Confidential/Highly Confidential designation requires good faith belief based on reasonable inquiry.

Source text: A person’s designation of information as Confidential or Highly Confidential means that the person believes in good faith, upon reasonable inquiry, that the information qualifies as such.

Confidential/Highly Confidential designations can be withdrawn by written notice to all parties.

Source text: A person who has designated information as Confidential or Highly Confidential may withdraw the designation by written notification to all parties in the case.

Sealed documents disposition options per General Rule 10 upon case closure

Source text: Any document contained within has been ordered sealed. Pursuant to General Rule 10 upon this case being closed the sealed document is to be:

Settlement conference statements are confidential and inadmissible at trial under Local Rule 83.5.

Source text: The pre-conference letters and the settlement conference are governed by Local Rule 83.5 relating to Confidentiality of Alternative Dispute Resolution Proceedings. Any statements made by any party during the settlement conference will not be admissible at trial.

Counsel may retain attorney work product (without verbatim substantial Confidential Information) and one complete set of all filed documents (including sealed) after litigation, subject to the protective order.

Source text: Notwithstanding the above requirements to return or destroy documents, counsel may retain: (1) attorney work product, including an index that refers or relates to designated Confidential Information so long as that work product does not duplicate verbatim substantial portions of Confidential Information; and (2) one complete set of all documents filed with the Court including those filed under seal. Any retained Confidential Information is subject to this Order’s protection.

Parties may agree to destruction of Confidential Information with certification instead of return, and waive requirements to locate e-mails or Confidential Information in deposition transcripts or expert reports.

Source text: The parties may choose to agree that the receiving party shall destroy documents containing Confidential Information and certify the fact of destruction, and that the receiving party shall not be required to locate, isolate and return e-mails (including attachments to e-mails) that may include Confidential Information, or Confidential Information contained in deposition transcripts or drafts or final expert reports.