Rule 6 - Documents Filed with the CourtA. Content of Documents. The clerk of the Court shall assign a docket number to each case. All documents filed with the Court shall be signed and contain: 1. a caption setting forth the title of the case and a brief description of the document;2. the case docket number assigned by the Court;3. the name, address, telephone number and e-mail address of the person who prepared the document. Documents filed with the Court must not be stapled or bound together except with a removable clip.
B. Privacy Protection for Filings Made with the Court.1. Redaction Required. Unless the court orders otherwise, a party or nonparty making an electronic or paper filing with the court shall not include, or will redact where inclusion is necessary, the following personal data identifiers: a. Social Security Numbers. If a Social Security Number must be included, only the last four digits of the number should be used.b. Dates of Birth. If a date of birth must be included, only the year should be used.c. Names of Minor Children. If the name of a minor child must be included, only the minor's first name and first initial of the last name should be used (e.g., John S.). If the parent's name also must be included, then only the parent's first name and first initial of the last name should be used (e.g., Amy S.).d. Financial Account Numbers. If a checking account, savings account, credit card, or debit card number or any other financial account number must be included, only the last four digits of the number should be used.e. Driver's license, state identification, or passport number.2. Filings Made Under Seal.a. If a person wishes to file documents containing the personal data identifiers listed in (1), the person may file unredacted documents under seal, together with redacted versions for public view. No order of the court will be required to file the unredacted documents under seal.b. Subject to the waiver in (6), if the person filing a document fails to redact the personal data identifiers listed in (1), the court, on its own motion or the motion of a party or affected nonparty, may order the unredacted documents to be sealed and order the person to file redacted versions for public view.c. The sealed, unredacted documents shall be filed separately and the bottom of each page shall be marked "Sealed and Confidential." Only one original unredacted document shall be filed unless otherwise ordered by the court.3. Caption. If the caption of the case contains any of the personal identifiers listed in (1), the court, on its own motion or the motion of a party or affected nonparty, shall redact the identifier.4. Additional Considerations. Any person filing a document with the court should exercise caution in including other sensitive personal data in the filings, such as personal identifying numbers, medical records, employment history, individual financial information, proprietary or trade secret information, information regarding an individual's cooperation with the government, information regarding the victim of any criminal activity, or national security information. Upon motion by the person filing the document, a party, or an affected nonparty, the court may order the unredacted documents to be sealed and order the person to file redacted versions for public view.5. Request for Redaction from Electronic Document. A person has a right to request the court remove from an image or copy of an official record placed on a publicly available Internet web site any of the personal data identifiers in (1). The request must be made in writing and delivered by mail, facsimile, or electronic transmission or in person, to the clerk of the court. The request must specify the identification page number that contains the personal data identifier. There is no fee for the redaction pursuant to this request.6. Waiver of Protection of Identifiers. The responsibility for ensuring that personal data identifiers set forth in (1) are redacted or sealed rests with the person filing the document. A person waives the protection of this Rule as to the person's own information by filing it or producing it pursuant to a discovery request without redaction and not under seal.S.C. R. P. Admin. Law. Ct. 6
2019 Revised Notes
Rule 6 was amended in 2014 to eliminate obsolete references to pleadings, to renumber former Rule 6 (which prescribes the content of documents filed with the Court) as Rule 6(A), and to add new Rule 6(B) in lieu of the former second paragraph of Rule 6(A), regarding privacy protection for documents filed with the Court. Rule 6(A) was amended in 2019 to provide that documents filed with the Court must not be stapled or bound together. Removable clips are permitted. Rule 6(B) specifies the personal data identifiers which must be redacted from documents before they are filed with the Court. Parties may file unredacted documents containing such identifiers under seal without prior Court order. If a person files a document or produces it pursuant to a discovery request without having redacted these identifiers or filing the document under seal, that person waives any protection for his or her own information. Affected nonparties may move to seal unredacted documents containing either the specified personal data identifiers or other sensitive information. In addition, subsection (4) of Rule 6(B) sets forth other types of information which should only be included with caution, and which may be subject to a motion to seal.
Finally, subsection (5) provides procedures for requesting the removal of personal data identifiers from court documents available on the Internet.