There is a presumption that the public will have access to all court filings.

Parties requesting entry of an order to preserve the confidentiality of materials disclosed in discovery must base the proposed order on the Model Confidentiality Order contained in the Local Rules (Form LR26.2), found here. The Model Confidentiality Order provides that parties should include or delete language in brackets as necessary to the specific case. Any other proposed changes to this model order must be shown in redlined format that reflects both deletions and additions to the model text. For proposed substantive changes, counsel and parties are encouraged to include comments explaining why the changes are sought.

Counsel shall file a motion for entry of the proposed confidentiality order and attach as exhibits both a redlined proposed order and a clean proposed order. Counsel shall separately email both exhibits to Proposed_Order_Alexakis@ilnd.uscourts.gov in Microsoft Word. The subject line of the email must include (1) the case name; (2) the case number; (3) the docket number of the corresponding motion; and (4) the title of the order that is proposed as indicated on the Notice of Electronic Filing. Counsel must serve a copy of a proposed order on all other parties by copying them on the email to Judge Alexakis’ Proposed Order inbox.

Judge Alexakis will not enter a proposed confidentiality order suggesting that material a party has designated as “confidential” may, for that reason alone, be filed under seal. Any confidentiality order that contemplates under-seal filings must provide that no documents may be filed under seal absent a separate motion showing good cause for sealing a portion of the record. A party’s mere designation of information as “confidential” is insufficient to permit filing under seal. Instead, a party seeking to file material under seal must set forth in its separate motion the reasons why the record should be sealed.

When a party wishes to file a document on the public docket that another party has marked confidential, the parties must meet and confer to determine which party is the appropriate party to file any motion to seal.

If Judge Alexakis permits a portion of a document to be filed under seal, the party filing the document also must file a redacted public-record version that includes the entire document except for the portions filed under seal.

The issuance of a protective order in light of this Standing Order will constitute Judge Alexakis’ determination, as required by Rule 26(c), that good cause existed for the issuance of a protective order.