N.D. W. Va. LR Civ P 26.05

(a) Protective Orders: If a party, or parties jointly, seek entry of a protective order

to shield information from dissemination, the movant or movants must demonstrate with

specificity that (1) the information qualifies for protection under Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(c), and

(2) good cause exists for restricting dissemination of the information on the ground that

harm would result from disclosure.

(b) Sealed Documents:

(1) General. The rule requiring public inspection of Court documents is

necessary to allow interested parties to judge the Court’s work product in

the cases assigned to it. The rule may be abrogated only in exceptional

circumstances.

(2) Submission. Unless otherwise authorized by law, a motion to seal

shall be filed electronically pursuant to LR Gen P 6.01 and the Court’s

Administrative Procedures for Electronic Case Filing, shall include the

proposed document to be filed under seal as an attachment to the motion,

and shall be accompanied by a memorandum of law which contains:

(A) the reasons why sealing is necessary, including the reasons why

alternatives to sealing, such as redaction, are inadequate;

(B) the requested duration of the proposed seal; and

(C) a discussion of the propriety of sealing, giving due regard to the

parameters of the common law and First Amendment rights of

access, as interpreted by the Supreme Court and the United States

Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit.