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govinfo:USCOURTS-ohsd-1_26-cv-00132-0
IN THE UNITED STATE DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF OHIO
WESTERN DIVISION AT CINCINNATI
GARRY MCDANIEL, :
: CASE NO. 1:26-cv-00132
Plaintiff, :
: JUDGE SUSAN J. DLOTT
vs. :
:
SMYRNA READY MIX CONCRETE, :
LLC, et al., :
:
Defendants. :
STIPULATED PROTECTIVE ORDER
Pursuant to the parties’ joint request that the Court enter this Order, and their agreement
that the following limitations and restrictions should apply to documents and information produced
for inspection and copying during the course of this litigation (the “Action”), the Court hereby
ORDERS that:
1. Scope. This Protective Order (hereinafter “Protective Order” or “Order”) shall
apply to all documents or other information produced in the course of discovery in this Action that
the producing person or entity (the “Producing Entity”) has designated as “CONFIDENTIAL –
SUBJECT TO PROTECTIVE ORDER” (either a “Confidentiality Designation” or collectively
the “Confidentiality Designations”) pursuant to this Order, including but not limited to, all initial
disclosures, all responses to discovery requests, all deposition testimony and exhibits, and all
materials (including documents or testimony) produced by non-parties in response to subpoenas
issued in connection with this matter, including all copies, excerpts, and summaries thereof
(collectively the “Confidential Information”).
2. Purpose. The purpose of this Protective Order is to protect against the unnecessary
disclosure of Confidential Information.
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3. Disclosure Defined. As used herein, “disclosure” or “to disclose” means to
divulge, reveal, describe, summarize, paraphrase, quote, transmit, or otherwise communicate
Confidential Information, and the restrictions contained herein regarding disclosure of
Confidential Information also apply with equal force to any copies, excerpts, analyses, or
summaries of such materials or the information contained therein, as well as to any pleadings,
briefs, exhibits, transcripts or other documents which may be prepared in connection with this
litigation which contain or refer to the Confidential Information or information contained therein.
4. Designating Material
a. Designating Material As Confidential: Any party, or any third party
subpoenaed by one of the parties, may designate as Confidential and subject to this
Protective Order any documents, testimony, written responses, or other materials produced
in this case if they contain information that the Producing Entity asserts in good faith is
protected from disclosure by statute or common law and the disclosure of which to persons
not subject to this Protective Order would cause a clearly defined, serious harm to the
business or competitive position of the designating party that could not be avoided by less
restrictive means. Example of documents or material that may qualify as Confidential for
purposes of this Protective Order include, but are not limited to, confidential personal
information, medical or psychiatric information, trade secrets, personnel records, including
non-party personnel records, Defendant Smryna Ready Mix Concrete, LLC company
handbooks, policies and procedures, driver training records, or such other sensitive
commercial information that is not publicly available. Information that is publicly available
may not be designated as Confidential. The designation of materials as Confidential
pursuant to the terms of this Protective Order does not mean that the document or other
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material has any status or protection by statute or otherwise except to the extent and for the
purposes of this Order.
5. Form and Timing Of Designation.
a. Documents And Written Materials. The Producing Entity shall designate
any document or other written materials as confidential pursuant to this Order by marking
each page of the material with a stamp setting forth the Confidentiality Designation, if
practical to do so. The person or entity designating the material shall place the stamp, to
the extent possible, in such a manner that it will not interfere with the legibility of the
document. Materials shall be so-designated prior to, or at the time of, their production or
disclosure.
b. Electronically Stored Information (“ESI”): If a production response
includes ESI, the Producing Entity shall make an effort to include within the electronic
files themselves the Confidentiality Designation to the extent practicable. If that is not
practicable, then the Producing Entity shall designate in a transmittal letter or email to the
party to whom the materials are produced (the “Receiving Party”) using a reasonable
identifier (e.g., the Bates range) any portions of the ESI that should be treated as
“CONFIDENTIAL – SUBJECT TO PROTECTIVE ORDER,” and any portions of the ESI
that should be treated as “ATTORNEYS’ EYES ONLY – SUBJECT TO PROTECTIVE
ORDER.”
c. Deposition Testimony. Deposition testimony will be deemed confidential
only if designated as such when the deposition is taken or within (30) thirty days after
receipt of the deposition transcript. Such designation must be specific as to the portions of
the transcript and/or any exhibits to which that Confidentiality Designation applies, except
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that any exhibit that was marked with a Confidentiality Designation at the time of
production, and which still bears that mark at the time of its use in a deposition, shall be
presumed to fall within the provisions of this Order without further designation.
d. Failure to Designate as Confidential . Inadvertent or unintentional production of
documents without a Confidentiality Designation shall not be deemed a waiver, in whole
or in part, of the right to designate documents as “Confidential” as otherwise allowed by
this Protective Order. Documents unintentionally produced without a Confidentiality
Designation may be later designated and shall be treated as “Confidential” from the date
written notice of the designation is provided to the receiving party. However, dissemination
or disclosure of documents produced without such designation prior to notification by the
designating party that the non-designation of the documents was inadvertent or
unintentional shall not be considered a violation or breach of this Order.
6. Limitation Of Use.
a. General Protections. All information that has received a Confidentiality
Designation, including all information derived therefrom, shall be used by any Receiving
Party solely for purposes of prosecuting or defending this Action. A Receiving Party shall
not use or disclose the Confidential Information for any other purpose, including but not
limited to any business, commercial, or competitive purpose. Except as set forth in this
Order, a Receiving Party shall not disclose Confidential Information to any third party.
This Order shall not prevent the Producing Entity from using or disclosing information it
has designated as Confidential Information, and that belongs to the Producing Entity, for
any purpose that the Producing Entity deems appropriate, except that the Producing
Entity’s voluntary disclosure of Confidential Information outside the scope of this Action
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may impact the protection that this Order would otherwise provide with regard to such
information, once disclosed.
b. Persons To Whom Information Marked “Confidential” May Be
Disclosed. Use of any information, documents, or portions of documents marked
“CONFIDENTIAL – SUBJECT TO PROTECTIVE ORDER,” including all information
derived therefrom, shall be restricted solely to the following persons who agree to be bound
by the terms of this Protective Order, unless additional persons are stipulated by counsel
or authorized by the Court:
1. outside counsel of record for the parties, and the administrative staff of
outside counsel's firms;
2. in-house counsel for the parties, and the administrative staff for each in-
house counsel;
3. any party to this action who is an individual;
4. as to any party to this action who is not an individual, every employee,
director, officer, or manager of that party, but only to the extent necessary
to further the interest of the parties in this litigation;
5. independent consultants or expert witnesses (including partners, associates
and employees of the firm which employs such consultant or expert)
retained by a party or its attorneys for purposes of this litigation, but only to
the extent necessary to further the interest of the parties in this litigation,
and only after such persons have completed the certification attached hereto
as Attachment A, Acknowledgment of Understanding and Agreement to be
Bound;
6. the Court and its personnel, including, but not limited to, stenographic
reporters regularly employed by the Court and stenographic reporters not
regularly employed by the Court who are engaged by the Court or the parties
during the litigation of this action;
7. the authors and the original recipients of the documents;
8. any court reporter or videographer reporting a deposition;
9. employees of copy services, microfilming or database services, trial support
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firms, and/or translators who are engaged by the parties during the litigation
of this action;
10. interviewees, potential witnesses, deponents, hearing or trial witnesses, and
any other person, where counsel for a party to this action in good faith
determines the individual should be provided access to such information in
order for counsel to more effectively prosecute or defend this action (as long
as the disclosure occurs in the presence of counsel, and copies, duplicates,
images, or the like are not removed or retained by any interviewee, potential
witness, deponent, or hearing or trial witness), provided, however, that in
all such cases the individual to whom disclosure is to be made has been
informed that the information contained in the disclosed document(s) is
confidential and protected by Court Order, that the individual understands
that he/she is prohibited from disclosing any information contained in the
document(s) to anyone; or
11. any other person agreed to in writing by the parties.
Prior to being shown any documents produced by another party marked “CONFIDENTIAL –
SUBJECT TO PROTECTIVE ORDER,” any person listed under paragraph 6(b)(3), 6(b)(4), or
6(b)(11) shall be advised that the confidential information is being disclosed pursuant to and
subject to the terms of this Protective Order.
8. Filing Materials Containing Information With A Confidentiality Designation.
In the event a party seeks to file with the Court any confidential information subject to protection
under this Order, that party must take appropriate action to ensure that the document receives
proper protection from public disclosure, including: (a) filing a redacted document with the
consent of the party who designated the document as confidential; (b) where appropriate (e.g., in
relation to discovery and evidentiary motions), submitting the document solely for in camera
review; or (c) when the preceding measures are inadequate, seeking permission to file the
document under seal by filing a motion for leave to file under seal.
Any motion to file a document subject to this Order under seal must meet the Sixth Circuit’s
standard set forth in Shane Group, Inc. v. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan , 825 F.3d 299 (6th
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Cir. 2016). The burden of demonstrating the need for and appropriateness of a sealing order is
borne by the moving party, and requires the moving party to analyze in detail, document by
document, the propriety of secrecy, providing reasons and legal citations. Regardless of whether
the parties agree, it remains the Court’s independent obligation to determine whether a seal is
appropriate for any given document or portion thereof. Any proposed sealing, even when
compelling reasons exist, must be narrowly tailored to serve the compelling reasons.
When a party to this Order seeks to file documents which it believes may warrant sealing, but is
not the party who may be prejudiced by the document or documents becoming part of the public
record, the filing party shall provide the potentially-prejudiced party or parties, or any potentially-
prejudiced third party or parties, with written notification of its intent to file such documents at
least (14) fourteen days before doing so. After being provided such notice, the potentially harmed
party or parties will then have (7) seven days to file with the Court a motion for sealing. The Court
will rule on the motion as promptly as possible. In the event a potentially-prejudiced party makes
such a motion, any time limit or deadline by which the non-designating party must submit its filing
will be held in abeyance until the Court makes its ruling and extended by the same number of days
between the making of the motion and the Court’s ruling thereon.
If the Court grants the motion, the documents designated as “Confidential” shall be filed
in a sealed envelope with a cover label bearing the caption of the action containing the following
notice: TO BE FILED UNDER SEAL PURSUANT TO AGREED CONFIDENTIALITY
ORDER ENTERED IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE SOUTHERN
DISTRICT OF OHIO, Case No. 1:26-cv-00132, or otherwise in accordance with the District
Court’s policies and procedures with regard to filing documents under seal electronically.
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Documents designated as “Confidential” used in any court proceeding in connection with this
action shall not lose their confidential status through such use.
If the Court denies the motion to file under seal, the non-designating party may file the
documents publicly without concern for their prior Confidentiality Designation. Nothing in this
Protective Order shall be construed as a prior directive to the court clerk to allow any document to
be filed under seal. The parties understand that documents may be filed under seal only with the
permission of the court after proper motion.
If a designating party makes any court filing that includes a document with a
Confidentiality Designation being filed publicly, and any non-designating party wishes to make a
responsive filing thereto that includes or had attached to it material or documents with a
Confidentiality Designation, the non-designating party may file the material or documents publicly
without concern for the prior designation.
9. Attorneys Allowed To Provide Advice. Nothing in this Order shall bar or
otherwise restrict any attorney for any party from rendering advice to his or her client with respect
to this case or from doing anything necessary to prosecute or defend this case and furthering the
interests of his or her client, except for the disclosure of the Confidential Information as proscribed
in this Order.
10. Excluding Others From Access. Whenever information bearing a Confidentiality
Designation pursuant to this Protective Order is to be discussed at a deposition, the person or entity
that designated the information may exclude from the room any person, other than persons
designated in Paragraph 6 of this Order, as appropriate, for that portion of the deposition.
11. No Voluntary Disclosure To Other Entities. The parties or anyone acting on their
behalf may not voluntarily disclose any Confidential Information to any state or federal law
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enforcement or regulatory agency, or any employee thereof, except in this litigation as set forth in
Paragraph 6 of this Order or as otherwise commanded by law or provided in this Order. Nothing
in this Order shall prevent a party from providing information in its possession in response to a
valid order or subpoena from a law enforcement or regulatory agency requiring the production of
such information, except that, prior to such production, the party producing the information shall
provide as much advance notice as possible to the person or entity that designated the material as
confidential to facilitate that party’s efforts to preserve the confidentiality of the material, if
warranted.
12. Disputes As To Designations. Each party has the right to dispute the
Confidentiality Designation asserted by any other party or subpoenaed person or entity in
accordance with this Protective Order at any time. If a party believes that any documents or
materials have been inappropriately designated by another party or subpoenaed party, that party
shall given written notice of such challenge and confer with counsel for the person or entity that
designated the documents or materials. As part of that conferral, the designating person or entity
must assess whether redaction is a viable alternative to complete non-disclosure. If any party
challenges the Confidentiality Designation of any document or information, the burden to properly
maintain the designation shall, at all times, remain with the person or entity that made the
designation to show that said document or information should remain protected pursuant to Federal
Civil Rule 26(c). In the event of disagreement, then the designating person or entity shall, within
fourteen (14) days from the date of written notice by the challenging party, file a motion pursuant
to Federal Civil Rule 26(c). A party who disagrees with the designation must nevertheless abide
by that designation until the matter is resolved by agreement of the parties; the designating party
fails to timely file a motion as stated herein; or by order of the Court.
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13. Information Security Protections. Any person in possession of Confidential
Information received from another person or entity in connection with this Action shall maintain
an information security program that includes reasonable administrative, technical, and physical
safeguards designed to protect the security and confidentiality of such Confidential Information,
protect against any reasonably anticipated threats or hazards to the security of such Confidential
Information, and protect against unauthorized access to or use of such Confidential Information.
If a Receiving Party discovers a breach of security, including any actual or suspected
unauthorized access, to Confidential Information subject to this Order, they shall: (1) notify the
person or entity who designated the materials under the terms of this Order of such breach;
(2) investigate and take reasonable efforts to remediate the effects of the breach; and (3) provide
sufficient information about the breach that the Producing Entity can reasonably ascertain the size
and scope of the breach. The Receiving Party agrees to cooperate with the Producing Entity or law
enforcement in investigating any such security incident. In any event, the Receiving Party shall
promptly take all necessary and appropriate corrective action to terminate the unauthorized access.
14. All Trials Open To Public. All trials, and certain pretrial proceedings and
hearings, are open to the public (collectively a “Public Hearing” or “Public Hearings”). Absent
further order of the Court, there will be no restrictions on any Party’s ability to the use during a
Public Hearing any document or information that has marked with a Confidentiality Designation
or documents or information derived therefrom that would disclose such confidential information.
However, if a party intends to present at a Public Hearing any document or information that has
been so designated, the party intending to present such document or information shall provide
advance notice to the person or entity that made the Confidentiality Designation at least (5) five
days before the Public Hearing by identifying the documents or information at issue as specifically
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as possible (i.e., by Bates Number, page range, deposition transcript line, etc.) without divulging
the actual documents or information. Any person may then seek appropriate relief from the Court
regarding restrictions on the use of such documents or information at trial, or sealing of the
courtroom, if appropriate. Failure to provide notice as stated herein shall not automatically bar a
party’s use of the document or information at the hearing but is a matter within the court’s
discretion.
15. No Waiver Of Right To Object. This Order does not limit the right of any party
to object to the scope of discovery in the above-captioned action.
16. No Determination Of Admissibility. This Order does not constitute a
determination of the admissibility or evidentiary foundation for the documents or a waiver of any
party’s objections thereto.
17. No Admissions. Designation by either party of information or documents under the
terms of this Order, or failure to so designate, will not constitute an admission that information or
documents are or are not confidential or trade secrets. Neither party may introduce into evidence
in any proceeding between the parties, other than a motion to determine whether the Protective
Order covers the information or documents in dispute, the fact that the other party designated or
failed to designate information or documents under this Order.
18. No Prior Judicial Determination. This Order is based on the representations and
agreements of the parties and is entered for the purpose of facilitating discovery in this action.
Nothing in this Order shall be construed or presented as a judicial determination that any
documents or information as to which counsel or the parties made a Confidentiality Designation
is in fact subject to protection under Rule 26(c) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure or
otherwise until such time as the Court may rule on a specific document or issue.
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19. Order Subject To Modification. This Order shall be subject to modification by
the Court on its own motion or on motion of a party or any other person with standing concerning
the subject matter.
20. Parties May Consent To Disclosure. Nothing shall prevent disclosure beyond the
terms of this Order if all parties consent to such disclosure, or if the Court, after notice to all
affected parties, permits such disclosure. Specifically, if and to the extent any party wishes to
disclose any Confidential Information beyond the terms of this Order, that party shall provide all
other parties with reasonable notice in writing of its request to so disclose the materials. If the
parties cannot resolve their disagreement with respect to the disclosure of any Confidential
Information, then a party may petition the Court for a determination of these issues. In addition,
any interested member of the public may also challenge the designation of any material as
confidential, pursuant to the terms of this paragraph.
21. Return Of Materials Upon Termination Of Litigation. Upon the written request
and expense of the Producing Entity, within 30 days after the entry of a final judgment no longer
subject to appeal on the merits of this case, or the execution of any agreement between the parties
to resolve amicably and settle this case, the parties and any person authorized by this Protective
Order to receive confidential information shall return to the Producing Entity, or destroy, all
information and documents subject to this Protective Order, unless the specific document or
information has been offered into evidence or filed without restriction as to disclosure. The party
requesting the return of materials shall pay the reasonable costs of responding to its request. The
party returning or destroying the documents or other information shall certify that it has not
maintained any copies of confidential information, except as permitted by this Order.
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22. Counsel Allowed To Retain Copy Of Filings. Nothing in this Protective Order
shall prevent outside counsel for a party from maintaining in its files a copy of any filings in the
Action, including any such filings that incorporate or attach Confidential Information. Moreover,
an attorney may use his or her work product in subsequent litigation provided that such use does
not disclose any Confidential Information.
SO ORDERED.
Dated:
U.S. District Judge/U.S. Magistrate Judge
AGREED TO:
/s/ Charlie M. Rittgers
Wesley M. Nakajima (0084563)
Charlie M. Rittgers (0086567)
Jonathan E. Specht (0105244)
RITTGERS RITTGERS & NAKAJIMA
matt@rittgers.com
charlie@rittgers.com
jack@rittgers.com
Attorneys for Plaintiff
/s/ Robert C. Buchbinder
ROBERT C. BUCHBINDER (0039623)
CHRISTOPHER GREEN (0096845)
AMUNDSEN DAVIS LLC
500 S. Front St., Ste. 1200
Columbus, OH 43215
(614) 229-4545 (phone)
(380) 246-9901 (fax)
RBuchbinder@amundsendavislaw.com
CGreen@amundsendavislaw.com
Counsel for Defendants Smyrna Ready Mix
Concrete and Errol Questelles
June 2, 2026 S/Susan J. Dlott
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IN THE UNITED STATE DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF OHIO
WESTERN DIVISION AT CINCINNATI
GARRY MCDANIEL, :
: CASE NO. 1:26-cv-00132
Plaintiff, :
: JUDGE SUSAN J. DLOTT
vs. :
:
SMYRNA READY MIX CONCRETE, :
LLC, et al., :
:
Defendants. :
FORM PROTECTIVE ORDER
ATTACHMENT A
The undersigned hereby acknowledges that [he/she] has read the Protective Order dated
[INSERT DATE OF OPERATIVE PROTECTIVE ORDER] in the above-captioned action and
attached hereto, understands the terms thereof, and agrees to be bound by its terms. The
undersigned submits to the jurisdiction of the United States District Court for the Southern District
of Ohio in matters relating to the Protective Order and understands that the terms of the Protective
Order obligate [him/her] to use documents designated “CONFIDENTIAL – SUBJECT TO
PROTECTIVE ORDER” or “ATTORNEYS’ EYE ONLY – SUBJECT TO PROTECTIVE
ORDER” in accordance with the Order, solely for the purpose of the above-captioned action, and
not to disclose any such documents or information derived directly therefrom to any other person,
firm, or concern.
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The undersigned acknowledges that violation of the Protective Order may result in
penalties for contempt of court.
Name:
Job Title:
Employer:
Business Address:
Date:
Signature
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