Local Rule LR 5.03: REQUESTS TO SEAL DOCUMENTS OR PORTIONS OF DOCUMENTS

LR 5.03 − REQUESTS TO SEAL DOCUMENTS OR PORTIONS OF DOCUMENTS

(a) Motion Required. Any party requesting that documents or portions of documents be sealed must file a motion for leave to file the document(s) under seal in accordance with LR 7.01.

(b) Procedures for Filing Motions to Seal in CM/ECF. Follow these instructions carefully. Failure to do so may result in the documents being immediately accessible to all parties or members of the public. If documents are erroneously filed not under seal, the Clerk's office cannot correct that error without an order from the Court to seal the documents.

(1) File a motion for Leave to File Document Under Seal via CM/ECF. DO NOT attach the document to be sealed to this motion at this stage.

(2) Immediately after filing the motion, file the proposed sealed document by selecting the "Sealed Document" event in CM/ECF.

Access to the document will remain restricted until the Court rules on the motion to seal. When documents are ordered to be placed under seal, such documents will be electronically accessible only to the Court.

(c) Contents of Motion to Seal. The motion for leave to seal or the response to a motion under subsection (d), even if unopposed, must provide compelling reasons to overcome the presumption that court records are open to the public. The motion to seal must show that the sealing is narrowly tailored to the stated reasons by specifically analyzing in detail, document by document, the propriety of secrecy, providing supporting facts and legal authority. Failure to provide sufficiently compelling reasons may result in denial of the request to seal documents or portions of documents. An unopposed motion or agreed order that does not address the standards for sealing documents does not comply with this rule.

(d) Use of Document by Party Not Designating Documents as Confidential. The party intending to use information or documents designated in discovery as confidential must file a motion to seal under LR 7.01(a). However, the party who designated the materials as confidential or otherwise seeks to restrict access to the materials retains the burden of meeting the requirements set out in subsection (c), either in a joint motion to seal or in a response under LR 7.01(a)(3).

(e) Redacted Filing. If practicable, the party requesting that some or all of a filing be sealed must also separately file a redacted version. If the filing of a redacted version is impracticable, the motion to seal must include an affirmative statement to that effect.

(f) Protective Orders. Proposed protective orders should not provide that documents produced in discovery and designated as "confidential" will be automatically sealed upon filing or if used at trial. Any such language in proposed protective orders may be stricken and may result in denial of the motion for entry of the proposed protective order.