REPEALED AND REPLACED BY
GENERAL ORDER 21-03
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF omo
2G21 JAN-8 PH I: ~5
In Re: ,:.S. UiSi i·:ICT '.:CURT
~CUT HERN DIST. OHIO
t:AST. DIV. COLUMBUS
PROCEDURES FOR THE FILING,
SERVICE, AND MANAGEMENT OF GENERAL ORDER NO. 21-01
HIGHLY SENSITIVE DOCUMENTS
RELATING TO CIVIL OR CRIMINAL
PROCEEDINGS
This Court issues this General Order in response to recent disclosures of wide-spread
breaches ofboth private sector and government computer systems. As a result of those breaches,
federal courts are adding new security procedures to protect from disclosure various highly
sensitive documents ("HSDs") filed in matters before the Court. In particular, and as further
described below, the Court finds that, pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 5(d)(3)(A) and Fed.R.Crim.P.
49(b)(3)(A), good cause exists to require all parties to file certain HSDs outside of the Court's
electronic filing system (CM/ECF), and to require the Clerk's Office likewise to docket and
maintain those filings outside that system.
To accomplish those objectives, effective as of the date of this Order, and until such time
as the Court orders otherwise, the filing of the below-described HSDs shall be subject to the
procedures and requirements set forth below. This General Order supersedes any and all
inconsistent provisions in existing local rules or other General Orders of this Court with regard to
the subject matter set forth herein.
1. Documents Subject to this Order
The filing procedures described herein apply only to documents that are designated as
HSDs. Not all documents that contain confidential information are designated as HSDs. To avoid
confusion, the Court provides the following guidance for designating HSDs:
a. The following types of documents are per se deemed HSDs: (1) applications for
search warrants; (2) applications for electronic surveillance under 18 U.S.C. § 2518;
(3) applications for a pen register or trap and trace device under 18 U.S.C. § 3122; and
(4) applications for a Court Order under 18 U.S.C. § 2703(d).
b. The following types of documents generally are not considered HSDs, but may be
designated by the Court as HSDs based on the specific circumstances of a given case:
(1) presentence reports; (2) pretrial release reports; (3) pleadings related to cooperation in most
criminal cases; (4) social security records; (5) administrative immigration records; and (6) sealed
filings in civil matters. Parties who believe that a given document in these categories is an HSD
should seek designation from the Court as such.
c. Any dispute as to whether a document is an HSD shall be resolved by the presiding
judge or, if no presiding judge is yet assigned, by the Chief Judge.
2. Filing of HSDs
a. A party filing a document that has been designated an HSD, whether because it falls
into a per se category of HSDs as set forth above, or because the given document has specifically
been designated an HSD by Court Order, shall submit to the Clerk's Office the HSD, the certificate
of service, and, if applicable, a copy of the Court Order designating the document as an HSD. The
party shall submit the HSD in the form of either two paper copies or an electronic copy on a secure
electronic device (as described in paragraph 6 below).
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b. The required documents, unfolded, or the secure electronic device shall be
submitted to the Clerk's Office in a sealed envelope marked "HIGHLY SENSITIVE
DOCUMENT." A copy of the HSD's caption page (with confidential information redacted) shall
be affixed to the outside of the envelope by the filing party.
c. The filing party shall serve the HSD on the other parties as follows:
i. Civil cases - by any manner specified in Fed.R.Civ.P. 5(b)(2), except for
service via the Court's electronic filing system; or
ii. Criminal cases - by any manner specified in Fed.R.Crim.P 49(a)(3)(B) or
(a)(4).
d. The Clerk's Office will make an informational docket entry in the Court's
electronic filing system indicating that the HSD was filed with the Court and will maintain the
HSD in a secure paper filing system or a secure standalone computer system that is not connected
to any network.
3. Filing of Motions to Treat a Document as an HSD
a. Represented parties
i. A represented party seeking to have a particular document designated as an
HSD shall file electronically, pursuant to normal CM/ECF procedures, a
motion seeking such designation and a proposed order. The motion shall
not attach a copy of the proposed HSD. The motion shall explain why the
document warrants designation as an HSD. The motion itself will be filed
on the public docket, so the filing party should take care to ensure that
confidential information from the HSD does not appear in the motion itself.
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11. As soon as practicable after the motion is filed, the filing party shall deliver
to the Clerk's Office the document as to which such designation is sought,
along with a certificate of service, in the fonn of either two paper copies or
an electronic copy on a secure electronic device (as described in paragraph
6 below). These documents or secure electronic device should be packaged
as specified in paragraph 2.b. The Clerk's Office shall provide the proposed
HSD to the judge who is handling the motion referenced in Paragraph
3(a)(i).
iii. The filing party shall serve the proposed HSD on the other parties (if any}
as specified in paragraph 2.c.
1v. The Court will issue an Order on the motion and, if granted, an
infonnational entry will be made on the case docket indicating that the HSD
has been filed with the Court. The Clerk's Office will maintain the HSD in
a secure paper filing system or a secure standalone computer system that is
not connected to any network.
b. Pro se parties
1. Pro se parties shall submit to the Clerk's Office for filing a motion seeking
designation of a document as an HSD, a copy of the proposed HSD, and a
certificate of service in the form of either two paper copies or an electronic
copy on a secure electronic device (as described in paragraph 6 below).
These documents or secure electronic device should be packaged as
specified in paragraph 2.b. The motion shall explain why the document
warrants designation as an HSD. The motion itself will be filed on the
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public docket, so the filing party should take care to ensure that confidential
information from the HSD does not appear in the motion itself The Clerk's
Office will provide the motion and the proposed HSD to the presiding judge.
ii. The filing party shall serve the proposed HSD on the other parties as
specified in paragraph 2.c.
iii. The Court will issue an Order on the motion and, if granted, an
informational entry will be made on the case docket indicating that the HSD
has been filed with the court. The Clerk's Office will maintain the HSD in
a secure paper filing system or a secure standalone computer system that is
not connected to any network.
4. Service of Highly Sensitive Court Orders
If the presiding judge in a given matter determines that a particular Court Order contains
highly sensitive information, the judge shall designate that Order as an HSD. The Clerk's Office
will file and maintain any such Order in a secure paper filing system or a secure standalone
computer system that is not connected to any network and will serve paper copies of the Order on
the parties via mail, and will make a notation on the public docket that a Court Order was filed that
date, but was designated as an HSD.
5. Removal of Existing HSDs or Highly Sensitive Cases from the Court's Electronic
Filing System
a. Upon motion of a party or upon its own motion, the presiding judge in a matter may
determine that a document, case, or any portion of it, that has been filed electronically is highly
sensitive and warrants designation as an HSD. Upon such determination, the presiding judge shall
direct that all HSDs filed in the matter, or, ifthe case itselfis an HSD, the entire docket of the case,
be removed from the Court's electronic filing system and maintained by the Clerk's Office in a
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secure paper filing system or a secure standalone computer system that is not connected to any
network.
b. A party's motion to remove an HSD or highly sensitive case from the Court's
electronic filing system shall explain why such document or case is highly sensitive.
6. Secure Electronic Device
If a party desires to meet its filing obligations under Paragraph 2 by use of a secure
electronic device, the party shall do so by filing the documents on a USB flash drive. The flash
drive shall have a label affixed to it that provides the case number for the relevant case, as well as
the date on which the USB flash drive is presented to the Clerk's Office for filing.
7. Questions about BSD Filing Procedures
Any questions about how an HSD should be filed with the Court pursuant to this General
Order should be directed to the Clerk's Office at (614) 719-3000 (Columbus matters), (513) 564-
7500 (Cincinnati matters), or (937) 512-1400 (Dayton matters).
IT IS SO ORDERED.
CHIEF UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
DATED: January 8, 2021
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