Sen. John J. Cullerton
Filed: 5/18/2004
 
 

 




 

 		












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AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 1191 




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    AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend House Bill 1191 by replacing 
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everything after the enacting clause with the following:


 
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    "Section 5. The Code of Civil Procedure is amended  by 
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adding Section 2-1021 as follows:
 
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    (735 ILCS 5/2-1021  new)
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    Sec. 2-1021. Product liability; confidentiality orders.
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    (a) As used in this Section, "product liability action" 
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means a lawsuit for damages for personal injury or wrongful 
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death caused by an instrumentality, a device, an instrument, a 
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product, or a condition of an instrumentality, a device, an 
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instrument, or a product that has caused and is likely to cause 
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personal injury or death in other members of the public.
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    (b) As used in this Section, "confidentiality order" means 
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a court order that limits the disclosure or dissemination of 
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information obtained through discovery in a product liability 
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action.
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    (c) For good cause shown, a party required to respond to 
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discovery in a product liability action may obtain a 
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confidentiality order.  If the court finds that such a 
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confidentiality order is appropriate, the order shall be 
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narrowly drafted and may permit the subsequent designation of 
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specific confidential materials.  The party requesting the 
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materials shall object with reasonable particularity to any 
 


 






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such designation of confidential materials that do not meet the 
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standard in subsection (d).
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    (d) Upon objection of a party to a designation that limits 
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disclosure or dissemination of materials under a 
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confidentiality order, the party seeking to limit disclosure or 
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dissemination pursuant to a claim of confidentiality must 
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demonstrate to the court, by a preponderance of the evidence, a 
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specific, serious, and substantial interest in confidentiality 
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that outweighs the adverse effect of confidentiality upon the 
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general public health or safety.  The court shall make written 
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findings in support of its decision to grant or deny 
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confidentiality.
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    (e) Nothing in this Section precludes the use of 
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confidentiality orders to protect trade secrets, consistent 
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with the standard in subsection (d).
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    (f) No agreement or order resolving or terminating a 
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product liability action may require any party to keep 
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confidential any information that is not covered by a 
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confidentiality order, with the exception of information about 
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settlement amounts or other benefits provided under a 
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settlement agreement.  Any provision of a settlement agreement 
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that violates this subsection (f) is severable from the 
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remainder of the agreement, notwithstanding any provision to 
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the contrary, and the remainder of the agreement shall remain 
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in force.
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    (g) Nothing in this Section shall affect the scope of 
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discovery under applicable court rules or the court's power to 
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supervise the discovery process.
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    (h) This Section does not apply to or affect laws or 
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regulations safeguarding the confidentiality of medical 
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records.
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    (i) This Section does not apply to healthcare services.
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    (j) Any person who satisfies the requirements of Section 
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2-408 of this Code may intervene in an action for the purpose 
 


 






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of challenging a confidentiality order, whether or not the 
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action is still pending.
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    (k) No person shall enter into an agreement to resolve a 
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potential product liability action if that agreement conceals 
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information, the disclosure of which is necessary to protect 
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the public health and safety.  An agreement shall be void as 
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against public policy only upon a final judicial determination 
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that the agreement violates this subsection (k).
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    (l) This Section applies to all confidentiality orders 
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entered into or executed with respect to product liability 
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actions and all agreements entered into on or after the 
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effective date of this amendatory Act of the 93rd General 
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Assembly.".