The US Trademark Trial and Appeal Board has issued a
precedential decision regarding the applicability of the
board's standard protective order, as well as the applicability
of the EU General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) on board
proceedings generally (Intercontinental Exchange Holdings, Inc.
v New York Mercantile Exchange, Inc. and Chicago
Mercantile Exchange, Inc. v Intercontinental Exchange Holdings,
Inc., 2021 USPQ2d 988 (TTAB 2021) [precedential]).
Modification of Standard Protective Order
Pursuant to Section 2.116(g), Chapter 37 of the code of Federal
Regulations, the board's standard protective order applies in
all inter partes review proceedings unless the parties
stipulate to alterations, which must then be approved by the board.
Under the standard order, parties may designate sensitive
information and documents as "confidential" or
"confidential – for attorneys' eyes only"
(AEO). The latter category requires parties to restrict access to
AEO
