King County Superior Court Sealing & Redaction Procedures

Defense counsel must present a motion and proposed order for sealing, and the sealing order itself may not be sealed.

It shall be the responsibility of defense counsel to present a motion and proposed order for sealing, if defense counsel is seeking to have the order and supporting pleadings sealed. The order sealing, itself, may not be sealed.

Original deposition transcripts must be sealed; if published/impeached in open court the sealed original is filed in the case file (not as an exhibit), while unused transcripts are not filed and are returned to counsel.

Original deposition transcripts should be sealed and published in open court in front of the jury, and when they are used for impeachment of testimony (the clerk opening the original that is sealed), the original deposition will be filed in the case file and not treated as an exhibit. Deposition transcripts that are not used (a.k.a. "published") are not filed and returned to counsel.

Motions to seal must comply with GR 15/LGR 15 and caselaw; party agreement alone is insufficient; a proposed order with required findings is needed; documents may not be filed under seal or redacted without a prior court order.

Motions to seal must comply with GR 15, LGR 15 and controlling caselaw. The agreement of the parties alone is not a sufficient basis for the sealing or redaction of court records. The moving party should provide a proposed order that includes the required findings. Documents must not be ‘”filed under seal” or redacted in the court file without prior permission (order) of the Court, regardless of what that parties believe is allowed by any Protective Order filed in the case.

Before filing substantive documents containing information sought to be sealed, the movant must obtain a court order allowing sealing/redaction, allowing sufficient time for noting and ruling.

Before filing any substantive documents that contain information sought to be sealed, the moving party must obtain and order allowing documents to be sealed or redacted. This requires the moving party to allow sufficient time for noting its motion and receiving a ruling from the Court prior to filing the documents. Documents with substantive redactions shall not be filed without prior permission of the Court.

A court order authorizing sealing must be obtained before any document is filed under seal, via motion noted without oral argument.

each document that is to be filed with the court must be subject to the above analysis and treatment and a court order reflecting the same and authorizing sealing of that pleading and file must be obtained. This may be done by motion noted without oral argument.

Parties must obtain a sealing/redaction order and receive a court ruling before filing documents containing sealed information.

Before filing any substantive documents that contain information sought to be sealed, the moving party must obtain an order allowing documents to be sealed or redacted. This requires the moving party to allow sufficient time for noting its motion and receiving a ruling from the Court prior to filing the documents.

Moving parties bear the burden of identifying competing interests and less restrictive alternatives (such as redaction) when seeking to seal documents.

Moving parties seeking to seal any documents filed with the court must meet this burden. Specifically, they must identify specific competing interests of parties and the public or considered alternatives or less restrictive methods, such as redaction of confidential or proprietary information. Finally, the order must be no broader in its application necessary to serve its purpose.

Documents with substantive redactions may not be filed without prior court permission.

Documents with substantive redactions shall not be filed without prior permission by of this Court.

Protective order sealing must comply with the stated limitations and Washington General Rule (GR) 15 before documents are sealed.

This protective order is therefore subject to these limitations and must comply with these provisions and General Rule (GR) 15 before any documents are sealed in the public file.

Motions to seal must comply with GR 15, LGR 15, and controlling caselaw; party agreement alone cannot justify sealing or redaction.

Motions to seal must comply with GR 15, LGR 15 and controlling caselaw. The agreement of the parties alone is not a sufficient basis for the sealing or redaction of court records.

Unredacted materials must be sent as hardcopy to the Judges' mailroom (516 3rd Ave, Rm C-203, Seattle, WA 98104) and are not accepted over email.

Unredacted materials (hardcopy) should be sent to the Court via the Judges mailroom (516 3rd Ave, Rm C-203 Seattle, WA 98104). We do not accept unredacted materials over email.

GR 22 cover sheets may only be used to seal filings meeting the cover sheet standards (without altering the form); otherwise a motion to seal under GR 15/LGR 15 is required.

The use of form cover sheets to seal filings as authorized under General Rule 22 should be used only to seal filings that satisfy the particular standards set forth in the relevant cover sheet and General Rule 22, and the contents of the cover sheet should not be altered when filling out the form. Otherwise, a party must move to seal any given record pursuant to General Rule 15 and Local General Rule 15.

Motions to seal must comply with GR 15, LGR 15, and controlling caselaw; party agreement is insufficient, and a proposed order with the required findings must be provided.

Motions to seal must comply with General Rule 15, Local General Rule 15, and controlling caselaw. Agreement of the parties is not a sufficient basis for sealing of court records. The moving party should provide a proposed order that includes the required findings.