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If you need the complete document, download the WordPerfect version or Adobe Acrobat version, if available. ***************************************************************** Before the FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION Washington, D.C. 20554 In the Matter of ) ) Illinois Bell Telephone Company ) (d/b/a Ameritech Illinois), ) Indiana Bell Telephone Company ) (d/b/a Ameritech Indiana), ) Michigan Bell Telephone Company ) (d/b/a Ameritech Michigan), ) The Ohio Bell Telephone Company ) (d/b/a Ameritech Ohio), and ) Wisconsin Bell, Inc. ) (d/b/a Ameritech Wisconsin), ) ) Complainants, ) ) v. ) File No. E-97-41 ) AT&T Corporation, ) ) Defendant. ) ORDER Adopted: April 24, 1998 Released: April 24, 1998 By the Chief, Formal Complaints and Investigations Branch, Enforcement Division, Common Carrier Bureau: 1. The parties have executed a Protective Agreement regarding treatment of confidential material in the above-captioned proceeding. Pursuant to Sections 0.459 and 1.727(a) of the Commission's rules, 47 C.F.R.  0.459, 1.727(a), the parties have requested the Commission to enter an order accepting their agreement. 2. After due consideration, we are persuaded that the public interest would be served by adopting the Protective Agreement, a copy of which is appended hereto. The Protective Agreement is consistent with Section 1.731 of the Commission's rules, 47 C.F.R.  1.731, and should facilitate the orderly exchange of relevant information in this proceeding. 3. Accordingly, IT IS ORDERED, pursuant to Sections 4(i) and 4(j) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C.  154(i), 154(j), and the authority delegated by Sections 0.91 and 0.291 of the Commission's rules, 47 C.F.R.  0.91, 0.291, that the parties' joint motion to accept the Protective Agreement appended hereto IS GRANTED. Nothing in this Order, or the Protective Agreement appended hereto, shall restrict the Commission's authority to use information or materials obtained in the course of this proceeding. 4. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that this Order shall be effective upon adoption. FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION Kurt A. Schroeder Chief, Formal Complaints and Investigations Branch Enforcement Division Common Carrier Bureau ATTACHMENT Before the FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION Washington, D.C. 20554 In the Matter of ) ) Illinois Bell Telephone Company, ) (d/b/a Ameritech Illinois) ) Indiana Bell Telephone Company ) (d/b/a Ameritech Indiana) ) Michigan Bell Telephone Company ) (d/b/a Ameritech Michigan) ) The Ohio Bell Telephone Company ) (d/b/a Ameritech Ohio) ) Wisconsin Bell, Inc. ) (d/b/a Ameritech Wisconsin) ) ) Complainants, ) ) v. ) File No. E-97-41 ) AT&T Corp., ) Defendant. ) PROTECTIVE AGREEMENT Adopted: Released: Defendant AT&T Corp. ("AT&T") and Complainants Illinois Bell Telephone Company (d/b/a Ameritech Illinois), Indiana Bell Telephone Company (d/b/a Ameritech Indiana), Michigan Bell Telephone Company (d/b/a Ameritech Michigan), The Ohio Bell Telephone Company (d/b/a Ameritech Ohio), Wisconsin Bell, Inc. (d/b/a Ameritech Wisconsin) (collectively, "Ameritech"), in order to adequately protect the confidential information of AT&T, Ameritech and their customers, and to ensure that information discovered in this case is not used for any purpose other than to assist in obtaining resolution of the claims alleged herein, THE PARTIES AGREE TO THE FOLLOWING: 1. Agreement to Be Bound. In accordance with Information and documents subject to this Order shall not be made available to any individual until that person has signed a form containing: (1) a recital that the signatory has read and understands this order and agrees to be bound to this order; and (2) a recital that the signatory understands that unauthorized disclosures of confidential documents and information is prohibited and that all confidential documents and information shall be used solely in connection with this litigation and for no other purpose whatsoever. 2. Non-disclosure of Stamped Confidential Documents and Confidential and/or Proprietary Information. Except with the prior written consent of the party or other person originally designating a document to be stamped as a confidential document, or as hereinafter provided under this order, no stamped confidential document or other confidential and/or proprietary information may be disclosed to any person. A "stamped confidential document" means any document which bears the legend (or which shall otherwise have had the legend recorded upon it in a way that brings its attention to a reasonable examiner) "CONFIDENTIAL-SUBJECT TO PROTECTIVE ORDER IN COMPLAINT No. E-97-41, before the Federal Communications Commission" to signify that it contains information believed to be subject to protection under the Commission's rules. For purposes of this order, the term "document" means all written, recorded, or graphic material, whether produced or created by a party or another person, whether produced pursuant to the Commission's rules, subpoena, by agreement, or otherwise, Interrogatory answers, responses to requests for admission, deposition transcripts and exhibits, pleadings, motions, affidavits, and briefs that quote, summarize, or contain materials entitled to protection. Such documents may be accorded status as stamped confidential documents, but, to the extent feasible, shall be prepared in such a manner that the confidential information is bound separately from that not entitled to protection. "Confidential and/or proprietary information" includes confidential business, customer, proprietary or commercial information or non- public commercially sensitive information of any nature. 3. Permissible Disclosure. Notwithstanding paragraph 1, stamped confidential documents or confidential or proprietary information may be disclosed, to the extent reasonably necessary to render professional services in the litigation, to counsel for the parties in this action, including in-house counsel for AT&T and Ameritech who are actively engaged in the conduct of this litigation; to the partners, associates, secretaries, paralegal assistants, and employees of such an attorney, to persons with prior knowledge of the documents or the confidential information contained therein, and their agents; and to Commission officials involved in this litigation; and court reporters, persons operating video recording equipment at depositions, and any special master appointed by the Commission. Stamped confidential documents or confidential or proprietary information may be disclosed to employees of the parties who have agreed to be bound by the terms herein, provided that such employees comply with paragraph 1 above. Subject to the provisions of subparagraph (c) below, such documents or information may also be disclosed: (a) to any person designated by the Commission in the interest of justice, upon such terms as the Commission may deem proper; and (b) in the event the Commission orders that depositions may be taken, to persons noticed for depositions or designated as trial witnesses to the extent reasonably necessary in preparing to testify; to outside consultants or experts retained for the purpose of assisting counsel in the litigation; to employees of parties involved solely in one or more aspects of organizing, filing, coding, converting, storing, or retrieving data or designing programs for handling data connected with these actions, including the performance of such duties in relation to a computerized litigation support system; and to employees of third-party contractors performing one or more of these functions; provided, however, that in all such cases the individual to whom disclosure is to be made has complied with paragraph 1 above. (c) Before disclosing a stamped confidential document or confidential or proprietary information to any person listed in subparagraph (a) or (b) who is a competitor (or an employee of a competitor) of the party that so designated the document, the party wishing to make such disclosure shall give at least ten days' advance notice in writing to the counsel who designated such information as confidential, stating the names and addresses of the person(s) to whom the disclosure will be made, identifying with particularity the documents to be disclosed, and stating the purposes of such disclosure. If, within the ten-day period, a motion is filed objecting to the proposed disclosure, disclosure is not permissible until the Commission has denied such motion. 4. Declassification. A party may apply to the Commission for a ruling that a document (or category of documents) stamped as confidential or information otherwise designated as confidential or proprietary is not entitled to such status and protection. The party or other person that designated the document or information as confidential shall be given notice of the application and an opportunity to respond. To maintain confidential status, the proponent of confidentiality must show by a preponderance of the evidence that there is good cause for the document or information to have such protection. 5. Confidential Information in Depositions. In the event the Commission orders that depositions may be taken in this proceeding: (a) A deponent may during the deposition be shown, and examined about, stamped confidential documents if the deponent already knows the confidential information contained therein or if the provisions of paragraph 3(c) above are complied with. Deponents shall not retain or copy portions of the transcripts of their depositions that contain confidential information not provided by them or the entities they represent unless they sign the form prescribed in paragraph 1 above. A deponent who is not a party or a representative of a party shall be furnished a copy of this order before being examined about, or asked to produce, potentially confidential documents. (b) Parties (and deponents) may, within fifteen (15) days after receiving a deposition transcript, designate pages of the transcript (and exhibits thereto) as confidential. Confidential information within the deposition transcript may be designated by underlining the portions of the pages that are confidential and marking such pages with the following legend: "Confidential-subject to protection pursuant to Commission Order." Until expiration of the 15-day period, the entire deposition will be treated as subject to protection against disclosure under this order. If no party or deponent timely designates confidential information in a deposition, then none of the transcript or its exhibits will be treated as confidential; if a timely designation is made, the confidential portions and exhibits shall be filed under seal separate from the portions and exhibits not so marked. 6. Confidential Information Filed in the Record. Subject to the Federal Rules of Evidence, stamped confidential documents and other confidential information may be offered in evidence at any Commission hearing, or in the record made by the parties and submitted to the Commission in this proceeding, provided that the proponent of the evidence gives ten days' advance notice to counsel for the party or other person that designated the information as confidential and files the confidential information in the record in accordance with Section 1.732(e) of the Commission's Rules, 47 C.F.R. ' 1.732(e) and paragraph 8 of this Order. Any party may move the Commission for an order that the evidence be received in camera or under other conditions to prevent unnecessary disclosure. The Commission will then determine whether the proffered evidence should continue to be treated as confidential information and, if so, what protection, if any, may be afforded to such information in the proceeding. 7. Subpoena by Courts or Other Agencies. If a court or another administrative agency subpoenas or orders production of stamped confidential documents which a party has obtained under the terms of this order, such party shall promptly notify the party or other person who designated the document as confidential of the pendency of such subpoena or order. 8. Filing. Stamped confidential documents or documents containing confidential or proprietary information need not be filed with the Commission's Secretary except when required in connection with motions under Sections 1.727, 1.730 or 1.732 of the Commission's rules and regulations or other matters pending before the Commission. If filed, they shall be filed under seal and shall remain sealed while in the Secretary's office or such other place as the Commission may designate so long as they retain their status as stamped confidential documents. 9. Client Consultation. Nothing in this order shall prevent or otherwise restrict counsel from rendering advice to their clients, and in the course thereof, relying generally on examination of stamped confidential documents; provided, however, that in rendering such advice and otherwise communicating with such client, counsel shall not make specific disclosure of any item so designated except pursuant to the procedures of paragraph 3 above. 10. Use. Persons obtaining access to stamped confidential documents or confidential or proprietary information under this order shall use the information only for preparation and the conduct of this litigation (including appeals), and shall not use such information for any other purpose, including business, governmental, commercial, or other administrative or judicial proceedings. 11. Non-Termination. The provisions of this order shall not terminate at the conclusion of these actions. Within 120 days after final conclusion of all aspects of this litigation, stamped confidential documents and all copies of same (other than exhibits of record, if any) shall be returned to the party or person which produced such documents, or, at the option of the producer (if it retains at least one copy of the same), destroyed. All counsel of record shall make certification of compliance herewith and shall deliver the same to counsel for the party who produced the documents not more than 150 days after final termination of this litigation. 12. Modification Permitted. Nothing in this order shall prevent any party or other person from seeking modification of this order or from objecting to discovery that it believes to be otherwise improper. 13. Responsibility of Attorneys. The attorneys of record are responsible for employing reasonable measures to control, consistent with this order, duplication of, access to, and distribution of copies of stamped confidential documents and access to other confidential and proprietary information. Parties shall not duplicate any stamped confidential document except working copies and for filing at the Commission under seal. 14. This Order is issued pursuant to Sections 4(i) and 208 of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C.  154(i), 208, and authority delegated under Section 0.291 of the Commission's Rules, 47 C.F.R.  0.291, and is effective upon its adoption. /s/ Peter H. Jacoby AT&T Corp. /s/ Gary L. Phillips Ameritech Dated: Feb. 24, 1998