The parties have submitted a dispute regarding the manner in which Plaintiff can examine data (Dkt. No. 397). Defendant Meta Platforms, Inc. (“Meta”) claims that providing the data in the manner that Plaintiff requests is both unduly burdensome and creates a risk of disclosure. Plaintiff disagrees on the issue of burden and specifically argues that Meta’s explanation of how the copying of data should occur is not realistic. The issues for this dispute are highly technical, and the undersigned needs assistance from a neutral evaluator with technical knowledge. For that reason, the parties are ordered to meet and confer by June 21, 2024 to choose a technical expert. If they cannot agree, they can each submit two names, with resumes, by June 24, 2024. If for some reason the parties are not able to find a technical expert in this timeframe, they can petition for an extension of time.

The Court will then choose a technical expert from those submitted by the parties. The costs of the technical expert will be shared equally by Plaintiff and Meta, but the Court may award the total costs or shift some part of the costs to the losing party.

Because this process may extend beyond the discovery cutoff, the parties are encouraged to request an extension of time from the District Court. The undersigned RECOMMENDS an extension of time, to be determined by the District Court.

IT IS SO ORDERED.