Orange County Choppers Inc. v. Trio Selection Inc.

Orange County Choppers Inc. v. Trio Selection Inc.

The court found the plaintiff held a reasonable belief that disclosure would seriously risk harm to important commercial interests because the documents contained sensitive financial and licensee information, the defendant failed to rebut that showing, and under r.151 the salutary effects of a protective order outweigh any effect on open courts; accordingly the protective order was granted and costs awarded to the plaintiff.

Citation
2006 FC 1122
Parties
Plaintiff/defendant in Counterclaim: Orange County Choppers Inc.; Defendant/plaintiff in Counterclaim: Trio Selection Inc.
Court
Federal Court
Jurisdiction
Canada
Judgment Date
19 September 2006
Procedural Posture
Civil Intellectual Property / Motion for Protective Order (pre Trial)
Outcome
Protective order granted; costs awarded to plaintiff; protective order to be issued in the form of plaintiff's draft
Legal Topics
Protective Order, Confidential Documents, Discovery, Open Court Principle, Trade Secrets
Source Language
English
Civil Procedure Confidentiality Intellectual Property Commercial Law Protective Order Confidential Documents Discovery Open Court Principle +1 more

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Parties

Orange County Choppers Inc.

Plaintiff/defendant in Counterclaim

Trio Selection Inc.

Defendant/plaintiff in Counterclaim

Procedural Posture

Civil Intellectual Property / Motion for Protective Order (pre Trial)

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether a protective order should be granted under Federal Courts Rules r.151
  2. 2 Whether disclosure of documents would cause a serious risk to plaintiff's commercial interests
  3. 3 How to balance the public interest in open courts against the need for confidentiality

Ratio Decidendi

The court found the plaintiff held a reasonable belief that disclosure would seriously risk harm to important commercial interests because the documents contained sensitive financial and licensee information, the defendant failed to rebut that showing, and under r.151 the salutary effects of a protective order outweigh any effect on open courts; accordingly the protective order was granted and costs awarded to the plaintiff.

Court Disposition

Protective order granted; costs awarded to plaintiff; protective order to be issued in the form of plaintiff's draft

Orders

  • Motion for protective order granted
  • Protective order in the form of the draft submitted by Orange County Choppers Inc. to be issued separately