Expert’s Past and Potential Consulting Work Precludes Access to Defendant’s Confidential Information

The court granted defendant's motion for a protective order precluding plaintiff's proposed expert from reviewing defendant's confidential information. "[One proposed expert] is an active consultant in the field at issue. In the very recent past, he has worked for several of [defendant's] competitors, and there has been no representation or agreement that he will not do so again in the very near future. [Defendant] points out several ways in which the information to which he would be exposed as an expert in this case could influence his work as a consultant on patent licensing, reverse engineering, and portfolio management, even if he were to make his best efforts to cabin the information off in his mind, and the court finds these concerns persuasive. Furthermore, despite the concerns raised by [defendant], [plaintiff] has not identified any unique qualifications or knowledge that make [him] better suited than any other expert to serve."

GPNE Corp. v. Apple Inc., 5-12-cv-02885 (CAND March 13, 2014, Order) (Grewal, M.J.)