He New York City Bar Association Committee Exchange Of Confidential Information
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15The New York City Bar Association Committee on State Courts of Superior
Jurisdiction (the “Committee”) has become aware of the substantial expenditure of time
and resources of the court and counsel in connection with the negotiation and drafting
of confidentiality agreements. It is our impression that confidentiality agreements are
used with greater frequency, particularly in cases filed in the Commercial Division. To
assist the court and the Bar, and to promote efficiency in these cases, the Committee
has drafted a standardized form of confidentiality agreement.
The Committee spent a significant amount of time deliberating over the contents
of the Stipulation and Order for the Production and Exchange of Confidential
Information (“Stipulation and Order”). Our primary concerns related to the filing under
seal documents which had been designated as confidential under the Stipulation and
Order, and whether to provide a mechanism for the designation of documents classified
as “Attorneys’ Eyes Only.”
Filing Under Seal
In New York, there is a strong presumption favoring public legal proceedings and
against sealing files without good cause shown. Danco Lab., Ltd. v. Chemical Works of
Gedeon Richter, Ltd., 274 A.D.2d 1, 711 N.Y.S.2d 419 (1st Dep’t 2000); In re Twentieth
Century Fox Film Corp., 190 A.D.2d 483, 601 N.Y.S.2d 267 (1st Dep’t 1993). NYCRR
§ 216.1 provides:
Sealing of court records
(a) Except where otherwise provided by statute or rule, a court shall not
enter an order in any action or proceeding sealing the court records,
whether in whole or in part, except upon a written finding of good cause,
which shall specify the grounds thereof. In determining whether good
cause has been shown, the court shall consider the interests of the public
as well as of the parties. Where it appears necessary or desirable, the
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