Contract analysis

1. FACT DISCOVERY STATUS Fact discovery closes on Monday, August 4. I am pleased to report that the team has substantially completed our document review and production. On the deposition front, we have completed the deposition of the FTC's 30(b)(6) designee, Claire Dunmore (Lead Trial Attorney, Bureau of Competition, Mergers IV Division), on market definition — that testimony yielded several useful admissions that we

2. EXPERT REPORTS Dr. Priya Ramanathan's affirmative expert report is due August 18. Dr. Ramanathan and Dr. Lucas Engström (Senior Economist) at Brindoval Analytics are well advanced in their analysis and drafting. The report will address the following key areas: (a) Relevant product market definition — Dr. Ramanathan will present a rigorous analysis demonstrating that the relevant market should be defined as "all e-

3. OPPOSITION BRIEF FILING TIMELINE Defendants' Memorandum in Opposition to the FTC's Motion for Preliminary Injunction is due August 11. The brief is in advanced draft stage — approximately 55 pages plus exhibits — and we anticipate circulating a near-final draft to you for review early next week. The key arguments in the opposition are as follows: (1) The FTC's proposed relevant market of "online marketplace platfo

4. WITNESS PREPARATION SCHEDULE FOR PI HEARING The September 8 hearing is now approximately five weeks away, and we need to begin scheduling witness preparation sessions for Cascade's key witnesses. We propose presenting the following Cascade witnesses at the evidentiary hearing: - Margaret "Meg" Thornberry (CEO & Chairwoman) — Meg's testimony will address corporate strategy, the procompetitive rationale for the acqu

5. COORDINATION WITH WHITFIELD, GREER & TANAKA (JOINT DEFENSE) Our weekly coordination calls with Diana Whitfield and Kenneth Oshiro are ongoing pursuant to the Joint Defense and Common Interest Agreement executed July 1. The working relationship has been productive and efficient. We have allocated briefing responsibilities for the PI opposition as follows: Calderwood & Harkness is leading on market definition and ef

6. DAUBERT MOTION — DR. WALLACE KEENAN We are preparing a Daubert motion to exclude or limit the testimony of Dr. Wallace Keenan (Thornfield Research Group), the FTC's economic expert. Our anticipated grounds include: (a) Dr. Keenan's SSNIP test analysis uses a flawed methodology that ignores supply-side substitution and cross-platform competition — a critical analytical error in a market as dynamic and interconnecte

7. IOSA INTERVENTION Briefly, our opposition to the Independent Online Sellers Alliance's motion to intervene — filed by Galloway & Peck LLP, led by Martina Galloway — has been submitted. We are confident that the court will deny or significantly limit intervention given the tight pre-hearing timeline and the fact that the FTC adequately represents any seller interests that IOSA purports to advance. We do not anticip

8. BUDGET AND STAFFING The team remains within the estimated fee range of $3.2 million to $4.5 million through the PI hearing phase. Brindoval Analytics is on track with its $1.8 million flat-fee engagement (plus expenses). Elaine Forsythe is managing billing and will provide you with a detailed budget update under separate cover. ACTION ITEMS To summarize, I would appreciate your attention to the following:

1. Witness Preparation Scheduling — Please coordinate with Meg Thornberry and Trish Delacroix to identify available dates during the weeks of August 11 and August 18 for full-day preparation sessions (at least two sessions each).

2. Opposition Brief Review — Please confirm your availability for a call early next week to discuss opposition brief strategy and any comments you may have on the draft, which we will circulate shortly.

3. Final discovery Production — As fact discovery closes August 4, please flag any additional internal Cascade documents or data that may be relevant and have not yet been collected or reviewed. Jerome, we remain confident in our defense position. The FTC's 3-2 vote to authorize suit itself reflects the weakness of the Commission's case, and we believe the evidentiary record will strongly favor Cascade at the hearing