UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT -- ' i
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EASTERN DISTRICT OF MlCHlGAlV I .,. . . ,
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Re: Privacy Protection for Civil Filings Adrr~i~iistrative
Order
Made with the Court - Compliance
with E-Government Act *'> J
No. 05-AO- C,,>~Y.
ADMINISTRATIVE ORDER
In compliance with the privacy policy of the Judicial Conference of the United States and
the E-Government Act, this administrative order supersedes Administrative Order No. 04-
AO-050 in re: Filing of Papers in Civil and Criminal Cases - Compliance with E-
Government Act of 2002, as it applies to civil cases. Privacy protection for criminal filings
made with the Court will be addressed in a separate administrative order.
(a) Redacting Filings. Unless otherwise ordered by the Court, an electronic or paper
filing made with the Court that includes a social security number or an individual's tax
identification number, a name of a person known to be a rr~inor,a person's birth date, a
driver's license number ora state-issued personal identification card number, or a financial
account number may include only:
(1) the last four digits of the social security number and tax identification number;
(2) the minor's initials;
(3) the year of birth;
(4) the last four digits of the driver's license number or state-issued personal
identification card number; and
(5) the last four digits of the financial account number.
(b) Exemptions from Redaction Requirement. The redaction requirement referenced
in (a) of this order does not apply to the following:
(1) in a forfeiture proceeding, a financial account number that identifies the
property alleged to be subject to forfeiture;
(2) the record of an administrative or agency proceeding;
(3) the official record of a state court proceeding;
Privacy Protection for Civil Filings Made with the Court -
Compliance with E-Government Act Page 2
(4) the record of a court or tribunal whose decision is being reviewed, if that
record was not subject to (a) of this order when originally filed;
(5) a filing covered by (c) or (d) of this order; and
(6) a filing made in an action brought under 28 U.S.C. § 2241, 2254 or 2255.
(c) Limitations on Remote Access to Electronic Files; Social Security Appeals
and Immigration Cases. Unless otherwise ordered by the Court, in an action for benefits
under the Social Security Act, and in an action or proceeding relating to an order of
removal, relief froni renioval, or immigration benefits or detention, access to an electronic
file is authorized as follows:
(1) the parties and their attorneys may have remote electronic access to any part
of the case file, including the administrative record;
(2) any other person may have electronic access to the full record at the
courthouse, but may have remote electronic access only to:
(A) the docket maintained by the C o ~ ~ and
rt;
(6) an opinion, order, judgment or other disposition of the Court, but not
any other part of the case file or the adn-~inistrativerecord.
(d) Filings Made Under Seal. The Court may order that a filing be made under seal
without redaction. The Court may later unseal the filing or order the person who made the
filing to file a redacted version for the public record.
(e) Protective Orders. If necessary to protect private or sensitive information' that is
not otherwise protected under (a) of this order, the court may by order in a case:
(1) require redaction of additional information; or
1
"Private or sensitive information" may include, but not be limited to medical records,
treatment and diagnosis; employment history; individual financial information; proprietary
or trade secret information; information regarding an individual's cooperation with the
government; information regarding the victim of any criminal activity; national security
information; and sensitive security information as described in 49 U.S.C. 9 114(s).
Privacy Protection for Civil Filings Made with the Court -
Compliance with E-Government Act Page 3
(2) limit or prohibit remote electronic access by a non-party to a document filed
with the court.
(f) Option for Additional Unredacted Filing Under Seal. A party making a redacted
filing under (a) of this order may also file an unredacted copy under seal. The court must
retain the unredacted copy as part of the record.
(g) Option for Filing a Reference List. A filing that contains information redacted
under (a) of this order may be filed together with a reference list that identifies each item
of redacted information and specifies an appropriate identifier that uniquely corresponds
to each item of redacted information listed. The reference list must be filed under seal and
may be amended as of right. Any reference in the case to an identifier in the reference list
will be construed to refer to the corresponding item of information.
(h) Waiver of Protection of Identifiers. A party waives the protection of (a) of this
order as to the party's own information to the extent that the party files such information
not under seal and without redaction. Parties are advised that the Clerk's Office will not
review documents filed with the court for compliance with this order. The responsibility to
redact filings rests with counsel and the parties.
Pursuant to the E-Government Act, the Judicial Conference is drafting rules of procedure
through the judiciary's formal rules process regarding privacy and public access to case
documents. This administrative order, which closely follows proposed Fed. R. Civ. P. 5.2,
is effective itr~mediatelyand will serve as the Privacy Policy for the United States District
Court for the Eastern District OF Michigan for civil cases until such time as the federal rule
is approved and takes effect.
IS ORDERED.
u i e f Judge
