Contract analysis

I. INTRODUCTION Plaintiff Federal Trade Commission ("FTC" or "Commission") and Defendants Cascade Retail Holdings Inc. ("Cascade") and Pinnacle Market Group Inc. ("Pinnacle") (collectively, "Defendants," and together with the FTC, the "Parties") respectfully submit this Joint Status Report pursuant to the Court's order entered at the initial case management conference held on July 14, 2025. The Parties submit this re

II. BACKGROUND OF THE TRANSACTION To provide the Court with necessary context for the scheduling and case management issues addressed herein, the Parties set forth the following summary of the underlying transaction. On March 14, 2025, Cascade and Pinnacle entered into an Agreement and Plan of Merger (the "Merger Agreement"). The transaction was publicly announced on March 17, 2025, when Cascade filed a Current Repor

III. STATUS OF PLEADINGS The FTC's Complaint for Temporary Restraining Order and Preliminary Injunction was filed in this Court on June 23, 2025. The Complaint alleges that the proposed merger would violate Section 7 of the Clayton Act, 15 U.S.C. § 18, and Section 5 of the FTC Act, 15 U.S.C. § 45, by substantially lessening competition in certain relevant markets for online marketplace platform services. Defendant Ca

IV. PENDING AND ANTICIPATED MOTIONS A. FTC's Motion for Preliminary Injunction The FTC's motion for a preliminary injunction constitutes the central pending motion in this proceeding. The FTC seeks an order under Section 13(b) of the FTC Act, 15 U.S.C. § 53(b), preliminarily enjoining the consummation of the proposed merger pending the resolution of the FTC's administrative proceeding before the Commission (Docket No

V. PROPOSED SCHEDULE FOR PRELIMINARY INJUNCTION PROCEEDINGS The Parties have conferred in good faith regarding a proposed schedule for the preliminary injunction proceedings and respectfully propose the following dates for the Court's consideration and approval: The Parties agree that the evidentiary hearing on the FTC's Motion for Preliminary Injunction is expected to last approximately five (5) court days, with eac

VI. STATUS OF DISCOVERY A. Initial Disclosures All Parties have served or will promptly serve their initial disclosures pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(a)(1). The FTC served its initial disclosures on July 10, 2025. Cascade served its initial disclosures on July 11, 2025, and Pinnacle served its initial disclosures on July 11, 2025. Cascade's initial disclosures identify, among others, the following ke

VII. EXPERT WITNESSES The Parties agree that expert reports shall be exchanged simultaneously on August 18, 2025, with rebuttal expert reports due on August 29, 2025. Defendants' Testifying Expert. Defendants have retained Dr. Priya Ramanathan, Managing Director, Brindoval Analytics LLC, 1700 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Suite 550, Washington, D.C. 20006, as their testifying economic expert. Dr. Ramanathan will offer opin

VIII. SUMMARY OF THE PARTIES' POSITIONS To assist the Court in its case management, the Parties provide the following brief summary of their respective positions on the merits of the FTC's Motion for Preliminary Injunction. A. The FTC's Position The FTC alleges that the proposed merger of Cascade and Pinnacle would violate Section 7 of the Clayton Act, 15 U.S.C. § 18, by substantially lessening competition in the mar

IX. OTHER MATTERS A. Proposed Protective Order The Parties are currently negotiating a stipulated protective order to govern the treatment of confidential business information produced during the course of discovery in this proceeding. The protective order will address the designation, handling, and use of materials designated as "Confidential" and "Highly Confidential — Attorneys' Eyes Only," including financial dat

X. CONCLUSION For the foregoing reasons, the Parties respectfully request that the Court enter a scheduling order consistent with the proposed dates set forth in Section V above, or such other schedule as the Court deems appropriate in light of the circumstances of this case and the Court's calendar. All Parties commit to compliance with the expedited discovery and briefing schedule and will endeavor to resolve disco