Section 480-07-423. Discovery—Protective orders—Submission requirements for documents.

(1) General. Protective orders entered in individual proceedings may allow for parties to designate portions of documents exchanged during discovery or submitted during a proceeding (e.g., by filing, or by offering as an exhibit) as "confidential" or "highly confidential." Parties must strictly limit the amount of information they designate as confidential or highly confidential.

(2) Standard for highly confidential designation. A party who wishes to designate information as highly confidential may file the documents designated as highly confidential, but must also file a motion for an amendment to the standard protective order, supported by a sworn statement that sets forth the specific factual and/or legal basis for the requested level of protection and an explanation of why the standard protective order is inadequate. The motion and sworn statement must identify specific parties, persons, or categories of persons, if any, to whom a party wishes to restrict access, and state the reasons for such proposed restrictions.

(3) Designations.

(a) The "confidential" designation is intended to protect information that might compromise a company's ability to compete fairly or that otherwise might impose a business risk if disseminated without the protections provided in the commission's protective order.

(b) The "highly confidential" designation is reserved for information the dissemination of which, for example, imposes a highly significant risk of competitive harm to the disclosing party without enhanced protections provided in the commission's protective order.

(4) Submission. Parties must follow the instructions in WAC 480-07-160(3) for properly marking and submitting documents with the commission as confidential or highly confidential in a proceeding governed by a protective order.

[Statutory Authority: RCW 80.01.040 and 80.04.160. WSR 06-16-053 (Docket A-050802, General Order R-536), § 480-07-423, filed 7/27/06, effective 8/27/06; WSR 03-24-028 (General Order R-510, Docket No. A-010648), § 480-07-423, filed 11/24/03, effective 1/1/04.]

RCW 80.01.040 and 80.04.160. WSR 06-16-053 (Docket A-050802, General Order R-536), § 480-07-423, filed 7/27/06, effective 8/27/06; WSR 03-24-028 (General Order R-510, Docket No. A-010648), § 480-07-423, filed 11/24/03, effective 1/1/04.

Rules

480-07-160,