1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 9 CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 10 WESTERN DIVISION 11 NEUROBRANDS, LLC 12 Case No. 2:20-cv-03612-FMO-KS 13 Plaintiff, v. PROPOSED 14 STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER 15 NEUROGUM, INC. 16 Defendant. 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 1 Pursuant to Rule 26(c) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and based 2 on the parties’ Stipulated Protective Order (“Stipulation”) filed on August 28, 3 2020, the terms of the protective order to which the parties have agreed are 4 adopted as a protective order of this Court (which generally shall govern the 5 pretrial phase of this action) except to the extent, as set forth below, that those 6 terms have been modified by the Court’s amendment of paragraph 11 of the 7 Stipulation. 8 9 AGREED TERMS OF THE PROTECTIVE ORDER AS ADOPTED AND 10 MODIFIED BY THE COURT1 11 12 1. A. PURPOSE AND LIMITATIONS 13 Discovery in this action is likely to involve production of confidential, 14 proprietary, or private information for which special protection from public disclosure 15 and from use for any purpose other than prosecuting this litigation may be warranted. 16 Accordingly, the parties hereby stipulate to and petition the Court to enter the following 17 Order. The parties acknowledge that this Order does not confer blanket protections on 18 all disclosures or responses to discovery and that the protection it affords from public 19 disclosure and use extends only to the limited information or items that are entitled to 20 confidential treatment under the applicable legal principles. The parties further 21 acknowledge, as set forth in Section 12.3, below, that this Order does not entitle them 22 to file confidential information under seal; Civil Local Rule 79-5 sets forth the 23 procedures that must be followed and the standards that will be applied when a party 24 seeks permission from the court to file material under seal. 25 26 1 The Court’s additions to the agreed terms of the Protective Order are generally indicated in bold typeface, and the Court’s deletions are indicated by lines through the text being deleted. 27 1 B. GOOD CAUSE STATEMENT 2 This action is likely to involve customer and pricing lists and other valuable 3 research, development, commercial, financial, and/or proprietary information for 4 which special protection from public disclosure and from use for any purpose other 5 than prosecution of this action is warranted. Such confidential and proprietary 6 materials and information consist of, among other things, confidential business or 7 financial information, information regarding confidential business practices, 8 information regarding purchase and sale prices of materials by suppliers, 9 manufacturers, importers or distributors, information regarding business practices, 10 information regarding the creation, purchase or sale of consumer products, or other 11 confidential research, development, or commercial information (including information 12 implicating privacy rights of third parties), information otherwise generally 13 unavailable to the public, or which may be privileged or otherwise protected from 14 disclosure under state or federal statutes, court rules, case decisions, or common law. 15 Accordingly, to expedite the flow of information, to facilitate the prompt resolution of 16 disputes over confidentiality of discovery materials, to adequately protect information 17 the parties are entitled to keep confidential, to ensure that the parties are permitted 18 reasonable necessary uses of such material in preparation for and in the conduct of trial, 19 to address their handling at the end of the litigation, and serve the ends of justice, a 20 protective order for such information is justified in this matter. It is the intent of the 21 parties that information will not be designated as confidential for tactical reasons and 22 that nothing be so designated without a good faith belief that it has been maintained in 23 a confidential, non-public manner, and there is good cause why it should not be part of 24 the public record of this case. 25 26 27 1 2. DEFINITIONS 2 2.1 Action: this pending federal lawsuit. 3 2.2 Challenging Party: a Party or Non-Party that challenges the designation 4 of information or items under this Order. 5 2.3 “CONFIDENTIAL” Information or Items: information (regardless of 6 how it is generated, stored or maintained) or tangible things that qualify for protection 7 under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(c), and as specified above in the Good Cause 8 Statement. 9 2.4 “ATTORNEYS’ EYES ONLY” Information or Items: information 10 (regardless of how it is generated, stored or maintained) or tangible things that qualify 11 for protection under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(c), and as specified above in 12 the Good Cause Statement that, due to the inherent competitive advantage maintained 13 by one or both parties is only viewable by counsel for the parties and other persons 14 specified below. 15 2.5 Counsel: Outside Counsel of Record and House Counsel (as well as their 16 support staff). 17 2.6 Designating Party: a Party or Non-Party that designates information or 18 items that it produces in disclosures or in responses to discovery as 19 “CONFIDENTIAL” or “ATTORNEYS’ EYES ONLY.” 20 2.7 Disclosure or Discovery Material: all items or information, regardless of 21 the medium or manner in which it is generated, stored, or maintained (including, 22 23 24 25 26 27 1 among other things, testimony, transcripts, and tangible things), that are produced or 2 generated in disclosures or responses to discovery in this matter. 3 2.8 Expert: a person with specialized knowledge or experience in a matter 4 pertinent to the litigation who has been retained by a Party or its counsel to serve as an 5 expert witness or as a consultant in this Action. 6 2.9 House Counsel: attorneys who are employed as in-house counsel of a 7 party to this Action. House Counsel does not include Outside Counsel of Record or 8 any other outside counsel. 9 2.10 Non-Party: any natural person, partnership, corporation, association or 10 other legal entity not named as a Party to this action. 11 2.11 Outside Counsel of Record: attorneys who are not employees of a party 12 to this Action but are retained to represent or advise a party to this Action and have 13 appeared in this Action on behalf of that party or are affiliated with a law firm that has 14 appeared on behalf of that party, and includes support staff. 15 2.12 Party: any party to this Action, including all of its officers, directors, 16 employees, consultants, retained experts, and Outside Counsel of Record (and their 17 support staffs). 18 2.13 Producing Party: a Party or Non-Party that produces Disclosure or 19 Discovery Material in this Action. 20 2.14 Professional Vendors: persons or entities that provide litigation support 21 services (e.g., photocopying, videotaping, translating, preparing exhibits or 22 23 24 25 26 27 1 demonstrations, and organizing, storing, or retrieving data in any form or medium) and 2 their employees and subcontractors. 3 2.15 Protected Material: any Disclosure or Discovery Material that is 4 designated as “CONFIDENTIAL” or “ATTORNEYS’ EYES ONLY.” 5 2.16 Receiving Party: a Party that receives Disclosure or Discovery Material 6 from a Producing Party. 7 3. SCOPE 8 The protections conferred by this Stipulation and Order cover not only Protected 9 Material (as defined above), but also (1) any information copied or extracted from 10 Protected Material; (2) all copies, excerpts, summaries, or compilations of Protected 11 Material; and (3) any testimony, conversations, or presentations by Parties or their 12 Counsel that might reveal Protected Material. 13 Any use of Protected Material at trial shall be governed by the orders of the trial 14 judge. This Order does not govern the use of Protected Material at trial. 15 16 4. DURATION 17 Once a case proceeds to trial, information that was designated as 18 CONFIDENTIAL, ATTORNEYS’ EYES ONLY, or maintained pursuant to this Order 19 used or introduced as an exhibit at trial becomes public and will be presumptively 20 available to all members of the public, including the press, unless compelling reasons 21 supported by specific factual findings to proceed otherwise are made to the trial judge 22 in advance of the trial. See Kamakana, 447 F.3d at 1180-81 (distinguishing “good 23 cause” showing for sealing documents produced in discovery from “compelling 24 reasons” standard when merits-related documents are part of court record). 25 Accordingly, the terms of this Order do not extend beyond the commencement of the 26 trial for materials used or introduced as an exhibit at trial. 27 1 For all other materials that are designated as CONFIDENTIAL, ATTORNEYS’ 2 EYES ONLY, or maintained pursuant to this Order, but not used or introduced as an 3 exhibit at trial, the confidentiality obligations imposed by this order shall remain in 4 effect even after final disposition of this litigation until a Designating Party agrees 5 otherwise in writing or a court order otherwise directs. Final disposition shall be 6 deemed to be the later of (1) dismissal of all claims and defenses in this Action, with 7 or without prejudice; and (2) final judgment herein after the completion and exhaustion 8 of all appeals, rehearings, remands, trials, or reviews of this Action, including the time 9 limits for filing any motions or applications for extension of time pursuant to applicable 10 law. After final disposition of this action, a Designating Party may make a written 11 request that a Receiving Party destroy all copies of the Designating Party’s materials 12 designated pursuant to this Order that have not become part of the public record 13 through use at trial or other hearing. The Receiving Party will do so and provide 14 confirmation within sixty (60) days that it has done so. 15 16 5. DESIGNATING PROTECTED MATERIAL 17 5.1 Exercise of Restraint and Care in Designating Material for Protection. 18 Each Party or Non-Party that designates information or items for protection under this 19 Order must take care to limit any such designation to specific material that qualifies 20 under the appropriate standards. The Designating Party must designate for protection 21 only those parts of material, documents, items or oral or written communications that 22 qualify so that other portions of the material, documents, items or communications for 23 which protection is not warranted are not swept unjustifiably within the ambit of this 24 Order. 25 Mass, indiscriminate or routinized designations are prohibited. Designations 26 that are shown to be clearly unjustified or that have been made for an improper purpose 27 1 (e.g., to unnecessarily encumber the case development process or to impose 2 unnecessary expenses and burdens on other parties) may expose the Designating Party 3 to sanctions. 4 If it comes to a Designating Party’s attention that information or items that it 5 designated for protection do not qualify for protection, that Designating Party must 6 promptly notify all other Parties that it is withdrawing the inapplicable designation. 7 Provided, however, that a good faith disagreement regarding qualification for 8 protection shall not constitute “coming to a Designating Party’s attention” for purposes 9 of this provision. 10 5.2 Manner and Timing of Designations. Except as otherwise provided in this 11 Order (see, e.g., second paragraph of section 5.2(a) below), or as otherwise stipulated 12 or ordered, Disclosure or Discovery Material that qualifies for protection under this 13 Order must be clearly so designated before the material is disclosed or produced. 14 Designation in conformity with this Order requires: 15 (a) for information in documentary form (e.g., paper or electronic 16 documents, but excluding transcripts of depositions or other pretrial or trial 17 proceedings), that the Producing Party affix at a minimum, the legend 18 “CONFIDENTIAL” (hereinafter “CONFIDENTIAL legend”) or the legend 19 “ATTORNEYS EYES ONLY” (hereinafter “ATTORNEYS EYES ONLY legend”), 20 to each page that contains protected material. If only a portion or portions of the 21 material on a page qualifies for protection, the Producing Party also must clearly 22 identify the protected portion(s) (e.g., by making appropriate markings in the margins). 23 A Party or Non-Party that makes original documents available for inspection 24 need not designate them for protection until after the inspecting Party has indicated 25 which documents it would like copied and produced. During the inspection and before 26 the designation, all of the material made available for inspection shall be deemed 27 1 “ATTORNEYS’ EYES ONLY.” After the inspecting Party has identified the 2 documents it wants copied and produced, the Producing Party must determine which 3 documents, or portions thereof, qualify for protection under this Order. Then, before 4 producing the specified documents, the Producing Party must affix the 5 “CONFIDENTIAL legend” or the “ATTORNEYS’ EYES ONLY legend” to each 6 page that contains Protected Material. If only a portion or portions of the material on 7 a page qualifies for protection, the Producing Party also must clearly identify the 8 protected portion(s) (e.g., by making appropriate markings in the margins). 9 (b) for testimony given in depositions, the Designating Party must 10 identify that the transcript contains Disclosure or Discovery Material on the record. 11 Further, within ten (10) days of receiving the final transcript of the deposition, the 12 Designating Party must identify the specific page and line numbers in the deposition 13 transcript containing Disclosure or Discovery Material. 14 (c) for information produced in some form other than documentary and 15 for any other tangible items, that the Producing Party affix in a prominent place on the 16 exterior of the container or containers in which the information is stored the legend 17 “CONFIDENTIAL” or “ATTORNEYS’ EYES ONLY.” If only a portion or portions 18 of the information warrants protection, the Producing Party, to the extent practicable, 19 shall identify the protected portion(s). 20 5.3 Inadvertent Failures to Designate. If notice is given within a reasonable 21 time of a Designating Party’s discovery of an inadvertent failure to designate qualified 22 information or items, such inadvertent failure to designate qualified information or 23 items does not, standing alone, waive the Designating Party’s right to secure protection 24 under this Order for such material. Upon receiving such notice of a designation, the 25 26 27 1 Receiving Party must make reasonable efforts to assure that the material is treated in 2 accordance with the provisions of this Order. 3 6. CHALLENGING CONFIDENTIALITY DESIGNATIONS 4 6.1 Timing of Challenges. Any Party or Non-Party may challenge a 5 designation of confidentiality at any time that is consistent with the Court’s Scheduling 6 Order. 7 6.2 Meet and Confer. The Challenging Party shall initiate the dispute 8 resolution process under Local Rule 37.1 et seq. 9 6.3 The burden of persuasion in any such challenge proceeding shall be on 10 the Designating Party. Frivolous challenges, and those made for an improper purpose 11 (e.g., to harass or impose unnecessary expenses and burdens on other parties) may 12 expose the Challenging Party to sanctions. Unless the Designating Party has waived 13 or withdrawn the confidentiality designation, all parties shall continue to afford the 14 material in question the level of protection to which it is entitled under the Producing 15 Party’s designation until the Court rules on the challenge. 16 7. ACCESS TO AND USE OF PROTECTED MATERIAL 17 7.1 Basic Principles. A Receiving Party may use Protected Material that is 18 disclosed or produced by another Party or by a Non-Party in connection with this 19 Action only for prosecuting, defending or attempting to settle this Action. Such 20 Protected Material may be disclosed only to the categories of persons and under the 21 conditions described in this Order. When the Action has been terminated, a Receiving 22 Party must comply with the provisions of section 13 below (FINAL DISPOSITION). 23 Protected Material must be stored and maintained by a Receiving Party at a 24 location and in a secure manner that ensures that access is limited to the persons 25 authorized under this Order. 26 27 1 7.2 Disclosure of “CONFIDENTIAL” Information or Items. Unless 2 otherwise ordered by the court or permitted in writing by the Designating Party, a 3 Receiving Party may disclose any information or item designated “CONFIDENTIAL” 4 only to: 5 (a) the Receiving Party’s Outside Counsel of Record in this Action, as 6 well as employees of said Outside Counsel of Record to whom it is reasonably 7 necessary to disclose the information for this Action; 8 (b) the officers, directors, and employees (including House Counsel) 9 of the Receiving Party to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary for this Action; 10 (c) Experts (as defined in this Order) of the Receiving Party to whom 11 disclosure is reasonably necessary for this Action and who have signed the 12 “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound” (Exhibit A); 13 (d) the court and its personnel; 14 (e) court reporters and their staff; 15 (f) professional jury or trial consultants, mock jurors, and Professional 16 Vendors to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary for this Action and who have 17 signed the “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound” (Exhibit A); 18 (g) the author or recipient of a document containing the information or 19 a custodian or other person who otherwise possessed or knew the information; 20 (h) during their depositions, witnesses, and attorneys for witnesses, in 21 the Action to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary provided: (1) the deposing 22 party requests that the witness sign the form attached as Exhibit A hereto; and (2) they 23 will not be permitted to keep any confidential information unless they sign the 24 “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound” (Exhibit A), unless otherwise agreed 25 by the Designating Party or ordered by the court. Pages of transcribed deposition 26 testimony or exhibits to depositions that reveal Protected Material may be separately 27 1 bound by the court reporter and may not be disclosed to anyone except as permitted 2 under this Stipulated Protective Order; and 3 (i) any mediator or settlement officer, and their supporting personnel, 4 mutually agreed upon by any of the parties engaged in settlement discussions. 5 7.3 Disclosure of “ATTORNEYS EYES ONLY” Information or Items. 6 Unless otherwise ordered by the court or permitted in writing by the Designating Party, 7 a Receiving Party may disclose any information or item designated “ATTORNEYS 8 EYES ONLY” only to: 9 (a) the Receiving Party’s Outside Counsel of Record in this Action, as 10 well as employees of said Outside Counsel of Record to whom it is reasonably 11 necessary to disclose the information for this Action; 12 (b) Experts (as defined in this Order) of the Receiving Party to whom 13 disclosure is reasonably necessary for this Action and who have signed the 14 “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound” (Exhibit A); 15 (c) the court and its personnel; 16 (d) court reporters and their staff; 17 (e) professional jury or trial consultants, mock jurors, and Professional 18 Vendors to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary for this Action and who have 19 signed the “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound” (Exhibit A); 20 (f) the author or recipient of a document containing the information or 21 a custodian or other person who otherwise possessed or knew the information; 22 (g) any mediator or settlement officer, and their supporting personnel, 23 mutually agreed upon by any of the parties engaged in settlement discussions. 24 8. PROTECTED MATERIAL SUBPOENAED OR ORDERED 25 PRODUCED IN OTHER LITIGATION 26 27 1 If a Party is served with a subpoena or a court order issued in other litigation that 2 compels disclosure of any information or items designated in this Action as 3 “CONFIDENTIAL” or “ATTORNEYS’ EYES ONLY,” that Party must: 4 (a) promptly notify in writing the Designating Party. Such notification 5 shall include a copy of the subpoena or court order; 6 (b) promptly notify in writing the party who caused the subpoena or 7 order to issue in the other litigation that some or all of the material covered by the 8 subpoena or order is subject to this Order. Such notification shall include a copy of 9 this Order; and 10 (c) cooperate with respect to all reasonable procedures sought to be 11 pursued by the Designating Party whose Protected Material may be affected. 12 If the Designating Party timely seeks a protective order, the Party served with 13 the subpoena or court order shall not produce any information designated in this action 14 as “CONFIDENTIAL” or “ATTORNEYS’ EYES ONLY” before a determination by 15 the court from which the subpoena or order issued, unless the Party has obtained the 16 Designating Party’s permission. The Designating Party shall bear the burden and 17 expense of seeking protection in that court of its confidential material and nothing in 18 these provisions should be construed as authorizing or encouraging a Receiving Party 19 in this Action to disobey a lawful directive from another court. 20 9. A NON-PARTY’S PROTECTED MATERIAL SOUGHT TO BE 21 PRODUCED IN THIS LITIGATION 22 (a) The terms of this Order are applicable to information produced by 23 a Non-Party in this Action and designated as “CONFIDENTIAL” or “ATTORNEYS’ 24 EYES ONLY.” Such information produced by Non-Parties in connection with this 25 litigation is protected by the remedies and relief provided by this Order. Nothing in 26 27 1 these provisions should be construed as prohibiting a Non-Party from seeking 2 additional protections. 3 (b) In the event that a Party is required, by a valid discovery request, to 4 produce a Non-Party’s confidential information in its possession, and the Party is 5 subject to an agreement with the Non-Party not to produce the Non-Party’s confidential 6 information, then the Party shall: 7 (1) promptly notify in writing the Requesting Party and the Non- 8 Party that some or all of the information requested is subject to a confidentiality 9 agreement with a Non-Party; 10 (2) promptly provide the Non-Party with a copy of the Stipulated 11 Protective Order in this Action, the relevant discovery request(s), and a reasonably 12 specific description of the information requested; and 13 (3) make the information requested available for inspection by 14 the Non-Party, if requested. 15 (c) If the Non-Party fails to seek a protective order from this court 16 within 14 days of receiving the notice and accompanying information, the Receiving 17 Party may produce the Non-Party’s confidential information responsive to the 18 discovery request. If the Non-Party timely seeks a protective order, the Receiving 19 Party shall not produce any information in its possession or control that is subject to 20 the confidentiality agreement with the Non-Party before a determination by the court. 21 Absent a court order to the contrary, the Non-Party shall bear the burden and expense 22 of seeking protection in this court of its Protected Material. 23 10. UNAUTHORIZED DISCLOSURE OF PROTECTED MATERIAL 24 If a Receiving Party learns that, by inadvertence or otherwise, it has disclosed 25 Protected Material to any person or in any circumstance not authorized under this 26 Order, the Receiving Party must immediately (a) notify in writing the Designating 27 1 Party of the unauthorized disclosures, (b) use its best efforts to retrieve all unauthorized 2 copies of the Protected Material, (c) inform the person or persons to whom 3 unauthorized disclosures were made of all the terms of this Order, and (d) request such 4 person or persons to execute the “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound” that 5 is attached hereto as Exhibit A. 6 11. INADVERTENT PRODUCTION OF PRIVILEGED OR OTHERWISE 7 PROTECTED MATERIAL 8 When a Producing Party gives notice to Receiving Parties that certain 9 inadvertently produced material is subject to a claim of privilege or other protection, 10 or when a Receiving Party reasonably suspects that it has received privileged 11 documents or information that the Producing Party inadvertently produced, the 12 obligations of the Receiving Parties are those set forth in Federal Rule of Civil 13 Procedure 26(b)(5)(B) and California Rule of Professional Conduct, Rule 4.4, i.e. that 14 the Receiving Party will refrain from using or examining the material any further and 15 shall promptly notify the Producing Party of the potential inadvertent disclosure, and 16 – on notification or confirmation from the Producing Party that the material was 17 privileged and inadvertently disclosed – shall promptly return, sequester, or destroy 18 the specified information and any copies it has and take reasonable steps to retrieve the 19 information if the Receiving Party disclosed it before being notified. The parties will 20 work together to resolve any disputes as to whether materials at issue are protected by 21 privilege, with guidance from the Court as necessary. consistent with Local Rule 37.1, 22 et seq. and the Court’s pre-motion discovery procedures. 23 Pursuant to Federal Rule of Evidence 502(d) and (e), the Parties agree that the 24 inadvertent or unintentional production of privileged material shall not be deemed a 25 waiver in whole or in part of a party’s claim of privilege. The Parties agree that prompt 26 notice or confirmation of an inadvertent disclosure constitutes reasonable steps to 27 1 rectify the error pursuant to Federal Rule of Evidence 502(b). This provision is not 2 intended to modify whatever procedure may be established in an e-discovery order that 3 provides for production without prior privilege review. 4 12. MISCELLANEOUS 5 12.1 Right to Further Relief. Nothing in this Order abridges the right of any 6 person to seek its modification by the Court in the future. 7 12.2 Right to Assert Other Objections. By stipulating to the entry of this Order, 8 no Party waives any right it otherwise would have to object to disclosing or producing 9 any information or item on any ground not addressed in this Order. Similarly, no Party 10 waives any right to object on any ground to use in evidence of any of the material 11 covered by this Order. 12 12.3 Filing Protected Material. A Party that seeks to file under seal any 13 Protected Material must comply with Local Civil Rule 79-5. Protected Material may 14 only be filed under seal pursuant to a court order authorizing the sealing of the specific 15 Protected Material at issue. If a Party’s request to file Protected Material under seal is 16 denied by the court, then the Receiving Party may file the information in the public 17 record unless otherwise instructed by the court. 18 13. FINAL DISPOSITION 19 After the final disposition of this Action, as defined in paragraph 4, within 60 20 days of a written request by the Designating Party, each Receiving Party must return 21 all Protected Material to the Producing Party or destroy such material. As used in this 22 subdivision, “all Protected Material” includes all copies, abstracts, compilations, 23 summaries, and any other format reproducing or capturing any of the Protected 24 Material. Whether the Protected Material is returned or destroyed, the Receiving Party 25 must submit a written certification to the Producing Party (and, if not the same person 26 or entity, to the Designating Party) by the 60 day deadline that (1) identifies (by 27 1 ||category, where appropriate) all the Protected Material that was returned or destroyed 2 (2) affirms that the Receiving Party has not retained any copies, abstracts, 3 ||compilations, summaries or any other format reproducing or capturing any of the 4 Protected Material. Notwithstanding this provision, Counsel are entitled to retain an 5 |{archival copy of all pleadings, motion papers, trial, deposition, and hearing transcripts, 6 ||legal memoranda, correspondence, deposition and trial exhibits, expert reports, 7 |;attorney work product, and consultant and expert work product, even if such materials g ||contain Protected Material. Any such archival copies that contain or constitute 9 || Protected Material remain subject to this Order as set forth in Section 4 (DURATION). 10 ||14. VIOLATION 11 Any violation of this Order may be punished by appropriate measures including, 12 || without limitation, contempt proceedings and/or monetary sanctions. 13 14 FOR GOOD CAUSE SHOWN, IT IS SO ORDERED. || DATED: August 31, 2020 16 KAREN L. STEVENSON 18 UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 || STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER 16

1 EXHIBIT A 2 ACKNOWLEDGMENT AND AGREEMENT TO BE BOUND 3 I, _____________________________________ [print or type full name], of 4 ____________________________________________ [print or type full address], 5 declare under penalty of perjury that I have read in its entirety and understand the 6 Stipulated Protective Order that was issued by the United States District Court for the 7 Central District of California on August 31, 2020 in the case of Neurobrands, LLC v. 8 NeuroGum, Inc., Case No. 2:20-cv-03612-FMO-KS. I agree to comply with and to be 9 bound by all the terms of this Stipulated Protective Order and I understand and 10 acknowledge that failure to so comply could expose me to sanctions and punishment 11 in the nature of contempt. I solemnly promise that I will not disclose in any manner 12 any information or item that is subject to this Stipulated Protective Order to any person 13 or entity except in strict compliance with the provisions of this Order. I further agree 14 to submit to the jurisdiction of the United States District Court for the Central District 15 of California for enforcing the terms of this Stipulated Protective Order, even if such 16 enforcement proceedings occur after termination of this action. I hereby appoint 17 ______________________________ [print or type full name] of 18 ___________________________ [print or type full address and telephone number] as 19 my California agent for service of process in connection with this action or any 20 proceedings related to enforcement of this Stipulated Protective Order. 21 22 Date: 23 City and State where sworn and signed: 24 25 Printed name: 26 Signature: 27