Request Foods, Inc. v. Partner's Produce, Inc.

REQUEST FOODS, INC.
Plaintiff,
v.
PARTNER’S PRODUCE, INC.,
Defendant.
Case No. 1:25-cv-01920
HON. HALA Y. JARBOU
STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER
THE PARTIES HAVING STIPULATED AND AGREED, through their attorneys, to the
entry of a Protective Order that shall be applicable to and govern the production or other
disclosure of confidential information in connection with this matter and for good cause shown,
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED:
Proceedings and Information Governed.
1. This Order (“Protective Order”) is made under Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(c). It governs
any document, information, or other thing furnished by any party to any other party, and it
includes any nonparty who receives a subpoena in connection with this action. The information
protected includes all information and documents that are designated by a party as “Confidential
Information” in accordance with the terms of this Protective Order.
Designation and Maintenance of Information.
2. For purposes of this Protective Order, the “Confidential Information” includes
information and documents that are generally maintained confidential by the party, including,
but not limited to, personnel information, medical information, financial information, or
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
WESTERN DISTRICT OF MICHIGAN
SOUTHERN DIVISION
____________________
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commercial information that is not publicly known, in accordance with Fed. R. Civ. P.
26(c)(1)(G), or other information required by law or agreement to be kept confidential.
3. Documents and things produced during this litigation within the scope of
paragraph 2 above may be designated by the producing party as containing Confidential
Information by placing on each page and each thing a legend, or otherwise conspicuously
designating electronically stored information, substantially as follows: CONFIDENTIAL.
4. A party may designate information disclosed at a deposition as Confidential
Information by requesting the reporter to so designate the transcript or any portion of the
transcript at the time of the deposition or within 14 days of receipt of the final court reporter
transcript. If no such designation is made, the deposition will be considered devoid of
Confidential Information.
5. If a party fails to appropriately designate Confidential information, the party may
subsequently do so by notifying the recipient’s counsel, and providing bates numbers for the
documents to be marked Confidential moving forward.
6. A copy of this protective order should be provided to third-party subpoena
recipients, for their review to determine whether Confidential designations are needed on any
documents produced in response to the subpoena request.
Challenge to Designation.
7. A receiving party may challenge a producing party’s designation at any time.
Any receiving party disagreeing with a designation may request that the producing party change
the designation. If the parties are unable to agree as to whether the confidential designation of
discovery material is appropriate, the party or parties receiving the designated documents shall
file a motion about any designated documents in dispute. All Protected Documents are entitled
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to confidential treatment pursuant to the terms of this Order until a contrary determination is
made by the court as to whether all or a portion of a designated documents is entitled to
confidential treatment.
Disclosure and Use of Confidential Information.
8. Information designated as Confidential Information may only be used for
purposes of preparation, trial, and appeal of this action. Confidential Information may not be
used under any circumstance for any other purpose.
9. Confidential Information may be disclosed by the receiving party only to the
following individuals, provided that such individuals are informed of the terms of this Protective
Order:
a) employees of the receiving party who are required in good faith to provide
assistance in the conduct of this litigation, including any settlement discussions;
b) in-house counsel for the receiving party;
c) outside counsel for the receiving party;
d) supporting personnel employed by (b) and (c), such as paralegals, legal
secretaries, data entry clerks, legal clerks, and private photocopying services;
e) experts or consultants retained by the receiving party;
f) any persons requested by counsel to furnish services such as document coding,
image scanning, mock trial, jury profiling, translation services, court reporting services,
demonstrative exhibit preparation, or the creation of any computer database from documents;
and
g) deponents and witnesses; and
h) the Court, including all Court personnel.
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10. It is agreed that inadvertent production of a document or information subject to
any privilege including the attorney-client privilege or work product immunity, despite the
parties’ reasonable efforts to pre-screen such document or information prior to its production,
does not waive the privilege. This Order shall not prejudice the right of the parties to oppose
the admissibility of any of the documents produced on the grounds of lack of relevancy,
privilege, or any other legal reason.
Subpoena or Other Process Seeking Documents.
11. Any party who has received Confidential Information, and who is thereafter
compelled by any law or Court order to disclose such Confidential Information in a manner
contrary to the terms of this Order, will use all reasonable efforts to immediately notify the
producing party of the obligation to disclose. Any such party shall also disclose only the
particular Confidential Information required to be disclosed.
Conclusion of Litigation.
12. Within thirty (30) calendar days after final judgment in this action, including the
exhaustion of all appeals, or within thirty (30) calendar days after dismissal pursuant to a
settlement agreement, each party or other person subject to the terms of this Protective Order is
under an obligation to destroy or return to the producing party all materials and documents
containing Confidential Information, and to certify to the producing party that this destruction
or return has been done. However, counsel for any party is entitled to retain all court papers,
trial transcripts, exhibits, and attorney work provided that any such materials are maintained
and protected in accordance with the terms of this Protective Order.
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Remedies.
13. It is Ordered that this Protective Order will be enforced by the sanctions set forth
in Fed. R. Civ. P. 37(b) and any other sanctions as may be available to the presiding judge,
including the power to hold parties or other violators of this Protective Order in contempt. All
other remedies available to any person injured by a violation of this Protective Order are fully
reserved.
14. Any party may petition the presiding judge for good cause shown if the party
desires relief from a term or condition of this Protective Order.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
Date: April 29, 2026
Hon. Ray Kent
United States Magistrate Judge
STIPULATED:
/s/ Christopher J. Predko
Christopher J. Predko (P56040)
WARNER NORCROSS + JUDD LLP
150 Ottawa Ave., NW, Suite 1500
Grand Rapids, Michigan 49503
(616) 752-2190
cpredko@wnj.com
Counsel for Plaintiff
/s/ Kate M. Hahn (w/permission)
Edward W. Hearn (P85022)
Kate M. Hahn
JOHNSON & BELL, P.C.
11041 Broadway
Crown Point, Indiana 46307
hearne@jbltd.com
Counsel for Defendant
032887.225130 #34240968-1
/s/ Ray Kent
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