Kristi Williamson v. The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated

• Court: District Court, C.D. California
• Decided: September 23, 2025
• Docket: 8:24-cv-02358
• Status: Unknown

Opinion

1 Frederic Gordon, SBN 98994-CA 201 South Lake Avenue 2 Pasadena, CA 91101 Telephone: (619) 572-2210 3 fgordonapc@gmail.com

4 William D. Marler, WSBA #17233 Ilana Korchia, WSBA #60180 5 Marler Clark, Inc., PS 180 Olympic Drive S.E. 6 Bainbridge Island, WA 98110 Telephone: (206) 346-1888 7 Fax: (206) 346-1898 bmarler@marlerclark.com 8 ikorchia@marlerclark.com Attorneys for Plaintiff, 9 KRISTI WILLIAMSON

10 Clifford A. Clancey E-Mail: cclancey@zellaw.com 11 Tracey Miller E-Mail: tmiller@zellaw.com 12 ZELMS ERLICH LENKOV AND MACK 20920 Warner Center Lane, Suite B 13 Woodland Hills, CA 91367-6540 Telephone: 213-785-3473 14 Attorneys for Defendant 15 The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated 16 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 17 CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA, SOUTHERN DIVISION 18 19 KRISTI WILLIAMSON, an individual, CASE NO. 8:24-cv-02358-JWH-DFM

20 Plaintiff, STIPULATION AND PROTECTIVE 21 v. ORDER

22 THE CHEESECAKE FACTORY INCORPORATED, a Delaware 23 Corporation; Complaint Filed: November 13, 2024 24 Defendant. Trial Date: February 2, 2026

26 27 28 1 STIPULATION 2 1. PURPOSES AND LIMITATIONS 3 Discovery in this action is likely to involve production of confidential, proprietary, 4 or private information for which special protection from public disclosure and from use 5 for any purpose other than prosecuting this litigation may be warranted. Accordingly, 6 Plaintiff KRISTI WILLIAMSON and Defendant THE CHEESECAKE FACTORY 7 INCORPORATED, (collectively “the Parties”) hereby stipulate to and petition the Court 8 to enter the following Stipulated Protective Order. The parties acknowledge that this 9 Order does not confer blanket protections on all disclosures or responses to discovery and 10 that the protection it affords from public disclosure and use extends only to the limited 11 information or items that are entitled to confidential treatment under the applicable legal 12 principles. The parties further acknowledge, as set forth in Section XIII(C), below, that 13 this Stipulated Protective Order does not entitle them to file confidential information 14 under seal; Civil Local Rule 79-5 sets forth the procedures that must be followed and the 15 standards that will be applied when a party seeks permission from the Court to file 16 material under seal. 17 2. GOOD CAUSE STATEMENT 18 This action is likely to involve customer and pricing lists and other valuable 19 research, development, commercial, financial, technical and/or proprietary information 20 for which special protection from public disclosure and from use for any purpose other 21 than prosecution of this action is warranted. Such confidential and proprietary materials 22 and information consist of, among other things, confidential business or financial 23 information, information regarding confidential business practices, or other confidential 24 research, development, or commercial information (including information implicating 25 privacy rights of third parties), information otherwise generally unavailable to the public 26 (e.g., names, addresses, and other contact information for Defendant’s employees and 27 agents), or which may be privileged or otherwise protected from disclosure under state or 28 1 flow of information, to facilitate the prompt resolution of disputes over confidentiality of 2 discovery materials, to adequately protect information the parties are entitled to keep 3 confidential, to ensure that the parties are permitted reasonable necessary uses of such 4 material in preparation for and in the conduct of trial, to address their handling at the end 5 of the litigation, and serve the ends of justice, a protective order for such information is 6 justified in this matter. It is the intent of the parties that information will not be designated 7 as confidential for tactical reasons and that nothing be so designated without a good faith 8 belief that it has been maintained in a confidential, non-public manner, and there is good 9 cause why it should not be part of the public record of this case. 10 3. ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF UNDER SEAL FILING PROCEDURE 11 The parties further acknowledge, as set forth in Section 12.3, below, that this 12 Stipulated Protective Order does not entitle them to file confidential information under 13 seal; Local Rule 79-5 sets forth the procedures that must be followed and the standards 14 that will be applied when a party seeks permission from the court to file material under 15 seal. There is a strong presumption that the public has a right of access to judicial 16 proceedings and records in civil cases. In connection with non-dispositive motions, good 17 cause must be shown to support a filing under seal. See Kamakana v. City and Cnty. of 18 Honolulu, 447 F.3d 1172, 1176 (9th Cir. 2006), Phillips ex rel. Ests. of Byrd v. Gen. 19 Motors Corp., 307 F.3d 1206, 1210–11 (9th Cir. 2002), Makar-Welbon v. Sony Elecs., 20 Inc., 187 F.R.D. 576, 577 (E.D. Wis. 1999) (even stipulated protective orders require good 21 cause showing), and a specific showing of good cause or compelling reasons with proper 22 evidentiary support and legal justification, must be made with respect to Protected 23 Material that a party seeks to file under seal. The parties’ mere designation of Disclosure 24 or Discovery Material as CONFIDENTIAL does not— without the submission of 25 competent evidence by declaration, establishing that the material sought to be filed under 26 seal qualifies as confidential, privileged, or otherwise protectable—constitute good cause. 27 Further, if a party requests sealing related to a dispositive motion or trial, then compelling 28 reasons, not only good cause, for the sealing must be shown, and the relief sought shall 1 be narrowly tailored to serve the specific interest to be protected. See Pintos v. Pac. 2 Creditors Ass’n, 28 3 605 F.3d 665, 677–79 (9th Cir. 2010). For each item or type of 3 information, document, or thing sought to be filed or introduced under seal in connection 4 with a dispositive motion or trial, the party seeking protection must articulate compelling 5 reasons, supported by specific facts and legal justification, for the requested sealing order. 6 Again, competent evidence supporting the application to file documents under seal must 7 be provided by declaration. Any document that is not confidential, privileged, or 8 otherwise protectable in its entirety will not be filed under seal if the confidential portions 9 can be redacted. If documents can be redacted, then a redacted version for public viewing, 10 omitting only the confidential, privileged, or otherwise protectable portions of the 11 document, shall be filed. Any application that seeks to file documents under seal in their 12 entirety should include an explanation of why redaction is not feasible. 13 4. DEFINITIONS 14 A. Action: The above-entitled case styled Kristi Williamson v. The 15 Cheesecake Factory Incorporated, pending before the United States 16 District Court for the Central District of California, Case No. Case No. 17 8:24-cv-02358-JWH-DFM. 18 B. Challenging Party: A Party or Non-Party that challenges the 19 designation of information or items under this Order. 20 C. “CONFIDENTIAL” Information or Items: Information (regardless of 21 how it is generated, stored or maintained) or tangible things that qualify 22 for protection under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(c), and as 23 specified above in the Good Cause Statement. 24 D. “Highly Confidential – Attorneys’ Eyes Only” (which may be 25 abbreviated as “AEO”): Any information which belongs to a 26 Designating Party who believes in good faith that the Disclosure of such 27 information to another Party or Non-Party would create a substantial 28 risk of serious financial or other injury that cannot be avoided by less 1 restrictive means. 2 E. “Highly Confidential Materials”: Any Documents, Testimony, or 3 Information, as defined below, designated as “Highly Confidential – 4 Attorneys’ Eyes Only” or “AEO” pursuant to the provisions of this 5 Stipulation and Protective Order. 6 F. Counsel: Outside Counsel of Record and House Counsel (as well as 7 their support staff). 8 G. Designating Party: A Party or Non-Party that designates information 9 or items that it produces in disclosures or in responses to discovery as 10 “CONFIDENTIAL.” The Designating Party shall have the right to 11 designate “Highly Confidential – Attorneys’ Eyes Only” only the non- 12 public Documents, Testimony, or Information that the Designating 13 Party in good faith believes would create a substantial risk of serious 14 financial or other injury, if Disclosed to another Party or non-Party, and 15 that such risk cannot be avoided by less restrictive means. This includes 16 non-public drafts and/or versions of documents prepared by Defendant 17 that were submitted to a public or quasi-public entity, agency, or 18 municipality in the course of its business. 19 H. Disclosure or Discovery Material: All items or information, regardless 20 of the medium or manner in which it is generated, stored, or maintained 21 (including, among other things, testimony, transcripts, and tangible 22 things), that are produced or generated in disclosures or responses to 23 discovery in this matter. 24 I. Expert: A person with specialized knowledge or experience in a matter 25 pertinent to the litigation who has been retained by a Party or its counsel 26 to serve as an expert witness or as a consultant in this Action. 27 J. Final Disposition: The later of (1) dismissal of all claims and defenses 28 in this Action, with or without prejudice; and (2) final judgment herein 1 after the completion and exhaustion of all appeals, rehearings, remands, 2 trials, or reviews of this Action, including the time limits for filing any 3 motions or applications for extension of time pursuant to applicable 4 law. 5 K. In-House Counsel: Attorneys who are employees of a party to this 6 Action. In-House Counsel does not include Outside Counsel of Record 7 or any other outside counsel. 8 L. Non-Party: Any natural person, partnership, corporation, association, 9 or other legal entity not named as a Party to this action. 10 M. Outside Counsel of Record: Attorneys who are not employees of a 11 party to this Action but are retained to represent or advise a party to this 12 Action and have appeared in this Action on behalf of that party or are 13 affiliated with a law firm which has appeared on behalf of that party, 14 and includes support staff. 15 N. Party: Any party to this Action, including all of its officers, directors, 16 employees, consultants, retained experts, and Outside Counsel of 17 Record (and their support staffs). 18 O. Producing Party: A Party or Non-Party that produces Disclosure or 19 Discovery Material in this Action. 20 P. Professional Vendors: Persons or entities that provide litigation- 21 support services (e.g., photocopying, videotaping, translating, 22 preparing exhibits or demonstrations, and organizing, storing, or 23 retrieving data in any form or medium) and their employees and 24 subcontractors. 25 Q. Protected Material: Any Disclosure or Discovery Material that is 26 designated as “CONFIDENTIAL,” “Highly Confidential – Attorneys’ 27 Eyes Only,” and “Highly Confidential Materials.” 28 R. Receiving Party: A Party that receives Disclosure or Discovery 1 Material from a Producing Party. 2 5. SCOPE 3 A. The protections conferred by this Stipulation and Order cover not only 4 Protected Material (as defined above), but also (1) any information copied or extracted 5 from Protected Material; (2) all copies, excerpts, summaries, or compilations of Protected 6 Material; and (3) any testimony, conversations, or presentations by Parties or their 7 Counsel that might reveal Protected Material. However, the protections conferred by this 8 Stipulation and Order do not cover the following information: (a) any information that is 9 in the public domain at the time of disclosure to a Receiving Party or becomes part of the 10 public domain after its disclosure to a Receiving Party as a result of publication not 11 involving a violation of this Order, including becoming part of the public record through 12 trial or otherwise; and (b) any information known to the Receiving Party prior to the 13 disclosure or obtained by the Receiving Party after the disclosure from a source who 14 obtained the information lawfully and under no obligation of confidentiality to the 15 Designating Party. 16 B. Any use of Protected Material at trial shall be governed by the orders of the 17 trial judge. This Order does not govern the use of Protected Material at trial. 18 6. DURATION 19 Once a case proceeds to trial, information that was designated as CONFIDENTIAL 20 or “Highly Confidential – Attorneys’ Eyes Only” or maintained pursuant to this protective 21 order used or introduced as an exhibit at trial becomes public and will be presumptively 22 available to all members of the public, including the press, unless compelling reasons 23 supported by specific factual findings to proceed otherwise are made to the trial judge in 24 advance of the trial. See Kamakana, 447 F.3d at 1180-81 (distinguishing “good cause” 25 showing for sealing documents produced in discovery from “compelling reasons” 26 standard when merits-related documents are part of court record). Accordingly, the terms 27 of this protective order do not extend beyond the commencement of the trial. 28 / / / 1 7. DESIGNATING PROTECTED MATERIAL 2 A. Exercise of Restraint and Care in Designating Material for Protection: Each 3 Party or Non-Party that designates information or items for protection under this Order 4 must take care to limit any such designation to specific material that qualifies under the 5 appropriate standards. The Designating Party must designate for protection only those 6 parts of material, documents, items or oral or written communications that qualify so that 7 other portions of the material, documents, items or communications for which protection 8 is not warranted are not swept unjustifiably within the ambit of this Order. 9 Mass, indiscriminate or routinized designations are prohibited. Designations that 10 are shown to be clearly unjustified or that have been made for an improper purpose (e.g., 11 to unnecessarily encumber the case development process or to impose unnecessary 12 expenses and burdens on other parties) may expose the Designating Party to sanctions. 13 If it comes to a Designating Party’s attention that information or items that it 14 designated for protection do not qualify for protection, that Designating Party must 15 promptly notify all other Parties that it is withdrawing the inapplicable designation. 16 Any Documents, Testimony, or Information to be designated as “Confidential” or 17 “Highly Confidential – Attorneys’ Eyes Only” must be clearly so designated before the 18 Document, Testimony, or Information is Disclosed or produced. The parties may agree 19 that a case name and number are to be part of the “Highly Confidential – Attorneys’ Eyes 20 Only” designation. The “Confidential” or “Highly Confidential – Attorneys’ Eyes Only” 21 designation should not obscure or interfere with the legibility of the designated 22 Information. 23 B. Manner and Timing of Designations: Except as otherwise provided in this 24 Order, or as otherwise stipulated or ordered, Disclosure of Discovery Material that 25 qualifies for protection under this Order must be clearly so designated before the material 26 is disclosed or produced. 27 Designation in conformity with this Stipulated Order requires: 28 (a) for information in documentary form (e.g., paper or electronic documents, but 1 excluding transcripts of depositions or other pretrial or trial proceedings), that the 2 Producing Party affix at a minimum, the legend “CONFIDENTIAL” (hereinafter 3 “CONFIDENTIAL legend”) or “Highly Confidential – Attorneys Eyes Only” (hereinafter 4 “AEO legend”) to each page that contains protected material. If only a portion of the 5 material on a page qualifies for protection, the Producing Party also must clearly identify 6 the protected portion(s) (e.g., by making appropriate markings in the margins). 7 A Party or Non-Party that makes original documents available for inspection need 8 not designate them for protection until after the inspecting Party has indicated which 9 documents it would like copied and produced. During the inspection and before the 10 designation, all of the material made available for inspection shall be deemed 11 “CONFIDENTIAL” or “AEO.” After the inspecting Party has identified the documents, 12 it wants copied and produced, the Producing Party must determine which documents, or 13 portions thereof, qualify for protection under this Order. Then, before producing the 14 specified documents, the Producing Party must affix the “CONFIDENTIAL legend” or 15 “AEO legend” to each page that contains Protected Material. If only a portion of the 16 material on a page qualifies for protection, the Producing Party also must clearly identify 17 the protected portion(s) (e.g., by making appropriate markings in the margins). 18 (b) For testimony given in depositions that the Designating Party identifies the 19 Disclosure or Discovery Material on the record, before the close of the deposition all 20 protected testimony. 21 (c) For information produced in some form other than documentary and for any 22 other tangible items, that the Producing Party affix in a prominent place on the exterior 23 of the container or containers in which the information is stored the legend 24 “CONFIDENTIAL” or “AEO.” If only a portion or portions of the information warrants 25 protection, the Producing Party, to the extent practicable, shall identify the protected 26 portion(s). 27 C. Inadvertent Failures to Designate: If timely corrected, an inadvertent failure 28 to designate qualified information or items does not, standing alone, waive the 1 Designating Party’s right to secure protection under this Order for such material. Upon 2 timely correction of a designation, the Receiving Party must make reasonable efforts to 3 assure that the material is treated in accordance with the provisions of this Order. 4 8. CHALLENGING CONFIDENTIALITY DESIGNATIONS 5 A. Timing of Challenges: Any Party or Non-Party may challenge a designation 6 of confidentiality at any time that is consistent with the Court’s Scheduling Order. 7 B. Meet and Confer: The Challenging Party shall initiate the dispute resolution 8 process under Local Rule 37-1 et seq. 9 C. Joint Stipulation: Any challenge submitted to the Court shall be via a joint 10 stipulation pursuant to Local Rule 37-2. 11 D. The burden of persuasion in any such challenge proceeding shall be on the 12 Designating Party. Frivolous challenges, and those made for an improper purpose (e.g., 13 to harass or impose unnecessary expenses and burdens on other parties) may expose the 14 Challenging Party to sanctions. Unless the Designating Party has waived or withdrawn 15 the confidentiality designation, all parties shall continue to afford the material in question 16 the level of protection to which it is entitled under the Producing Party’s designation until 17 the Court rules on the challenge. 18 9. ACCESS TO AND USE OF PROTECTED MATERIAL 19 A. Basic Principles: A Receiving Party may use Protected Material that is 20 disclosed or produced by another Party or by a Non-Party in connection with this Action 21 only for prosecuting, defending or attempting to settle this Action. Such Protected 22 Material may be disclosed only to the categories of persons and under the conditions 23 described in this Order. When the Action has been terminated, a Receiving Party must 24 comply with the provisions of section 15 below (FINAL DISPOSITION). 25 B. Disclosure of “CONFIDENTIAL” Information or Items: Unless otherwise 26 ordered by the court or permitted in writing by the Designating Party, a Receiving Party 27 may disclose any information or item designated “CONFIDENTIAL” only to: 28 (a) The Receiving Party’s Outside Counsel of Record in this Action, as well as 1 employees of said Outside Counsel of Record to whom it is reasonably necessary to 2 disclose the information for this Action; 3 (b) The officers, directors, and employees (including House Counsel) of the 4 Receiving Party to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary for this Action; 5 (c) Outside experts or expert consultants consulted by the undersigned Parties or 6 their counsel in connection with the Proceeding, whether or not retained to testify at any 7 oral hearing; provided, however, that prior to the Disclosure of Highly Confidential 8 Materials to any such expert or expert consultant, consultant, counsel for the Party making 9 the Disclosure shall deliver a copy of this Stipulation and Protective Order to such person, 10 shall explain its terms to such person, and shall secure the signage of such person of the 11 “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound (Exhibit A) prior to the Disclosure of 12 Highly Confidential Materials. It shall be the obligation of Trial Counsel, upon learning 13 of any breach or threatened breach of this Stipulation and Protective Order by any such 14 expert or expert consultant, to promptly notify Trial Counsel for the Designating Party of 15 such breach or threatened breach. 16 (d) The court and its personnel; 17 (e) Court reporters and their staff; 18 (f) Professional jury or trial consultants, mock jurors, and Professional Vendors to 19 whom disclosure is reasonably necessary for this Action and who have signed the 20 “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound” (Exhibit A); 21 (g) The author or recipient of a document containing the information or a custodian 22 or other person who otherwise possessed or knew the information; 23 (h) During their depositions, witnesses, and attorneys for witnesses, in the Action 24 to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary provided: (1) the deposing party requests that 25 the witness sign the form attached as Exhibit A hereto; and (2) they will not be permitted 26 to keep any confidential information unless they sign the “Acknowledgment and 27 Agreement to Be Bound” (Exhibit A), unless otherwise agreed by the Designating Party 28 or ordered by the court. Pages of transcribed deposition testimony or exhibits to 1 depositions that reveal Protected Material may be separately bound by the court reporter 2 and may not be disclosed to anyone except as permitted under this Stipulated Protective 3 Order; and 4 (i) Any mediators or settlement officers and their supporting personnel, mutually 5 agreed upon by any of the parties engaged in settlement discussions. 6 C. Disclosure of Highly Confidential Materials or Items: Unless otherwise 7 ordered by the court or permitted in writing by the Designating Party, a Receiving Party 8 may disclose any information or item designated “Highly Confidential – Attorneys’ Eyes 9 Only” only to: 10 (a) Attorneys of record in the Proceeding and their affiliated attorneys, paralegals, 11 clerical and secretarial staff employed by such attorneys who are actively involved in the 12 Proceeding and are not employees of any Party; 13 (b) Trial Counsel for the Parties, their partners and associates, and staff and 14 supporting personnel of such attorneys, such as paralegal assistants, secretarial, 15 stenographic and clerical employees and contractors, and outside copying services, who 16 are working on this Proceeding (or any further proceedings herein) under the direction of 17 such attorneys and to whom it is necessary that the Highly Confidential Materials be 18 Disclosed for purposes of this Proceeding. Such employees, assistants, contractors and 19 agents to whom such access is permitted and/or Disclosure is made shall, prior to such 20 access or Disclosure, be advised of, and become subject to, the provisions of this 21 Protective Order. 22 (c) Outside experts or expert consultants consulted by the undersigned Parties or 23 their counsel in connection with the Proceeding, whether or not retained to testify at any 24 oral hearing; provided, however, that prior to the Disclosure of Highly Confidential 25 Materials to any such expert or expert consultant, consultant, counsel for the Party making 26 the Disclosure shall deliver a copy of this Stipulation and Protective Order to such person, 27 shall explain its terms to such person, and shall secure the signage of such person of the 28 “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound (Exhibit A) prior to the Disclosure of 1 Highly Confidential Materials. It shall be the obligation of Trial Counsel, upon learning 2 of any breach or threatened breach of this Stipulation and Protective Order by any such 3 expert or expert consultant, to promptly notify Trial Counsel for the Designating Party of 4 such breach or threatened breach. 5 (d) Court reporters in this Proceeding (whether at depositions, hearings, or any 6 other proceeding); and 7 (e) the Court and its personnel. 8 10. PROTECTED MATERIAL SUBPOENAED OR ORDERED 9 PRODUCED IN OTHER LITIGATION 10 If a Party is served with a subpoena or a court order issued in other litigation that 11 compels disclosure of any information or items designated in this Action as 12 “CONFIDENTIAL” or “AEO” that Party must: 13 (a) Promptly notify in writing the Designating Party. Such notification shall include 14 a copy of the subpoena or court order; 15 (b) Promptly notify in writing the party who caused the subpoena or order to issue 16 in the other litigation that some or all of the material covered by the subpoena or order is 17 subject to this Protective Order. Such notification shall include a copy of this Stipulated 18 Protective Order; and 19 (c) Cooperate with respect to all reasonable procedures sought to be pursued by the 20 Designating Party whose Protected Material may be affected. If the Designating Party 21 timely seeks a protective order, the Party served with the subpoena or court order shall 22 not produce any information designated in this action as “CONFIDENTIAL” or “AEO” 23 before a determination by the court from which the subpoena or order issued, unless the 24 Party has obtained the Designating Party’s permission. The Designating Party shall bear 25 the burden and expense of seeking protection in that court of its confidential material and 26 nothing in these provisions should be construed as authorizing or encouraging a Receiving 27 Party in this Action to disobey a lawful directive from another court. 28 / / / 1 11. NON-PARTY’S PROTECTED MATERIAL SOUGHT TO BE 2 PRODUCED IN THIS LITIGATION 3 (a) The terms of this Order are applicable to information produced by a Non-Party 4 in this Action and designated as “CONFIDENTIAL” or “AEO.” Such information 5 produced by Non-Parties in connection with this litigation is protected by the remedies 6 and relief provided by this Order. Nothing in these provisions should be construed as 7 prohibiting a Non-Party from seeking additional protections. 8 (b) In the event that a Party is required, by a valid discovery request, to produce a 9 Non-Party’s confidential information in its possession, and the Party is subject to an 10 agreement with the Non-Party not to produce the Non-Party’s confidential information, 11 then the Party shall: 12 (1) Promptly notify in writing the Requesting Party and the Non-Party that 13 some or all of the information requested is subject to a confidentiality agreement 14 with a Non-Party; 15 (2) Promptly provide the Non-Party with a copy of the Stipulated Protective 16 Order in this Action, the relevant discovery request(s), and a reasonably specific 17 description of the information requested; and 18 (3) Make the information requested available for inspection by the Non- 19 Party, if requested. 20 (c) If the Non-Party fails to seek a protective order from this court within 14 days 21 of receiving the notice and accompanying information, the Receiving Party may produce 22 the Non-Party’s confidential information responsive to the discovery request. If the Non- 23 Party timely seeks a protective order, the Receiving Party shall not produce any 24 information in its possession or control that is subject to the confidentiality agreement 25 with the Non-Party before a determination by the court. Absent a court order to the 26 contrary, the Non-Party shall bear the burden and expense of seeking protection in this 27 court of its Protected Material. 28 / / / 1 12. UNAUTHORIZED DISCLOSURE OF PROTECTED MATERIAL 2 If a Receiving Party learns that, by inadvertence or otherwise, it has disclosed 3 Protected Material to any person or in any circumstance not authorized under this 4 Stipulated Protective Order, the Receiving Party must immediately (a) notify in writing 5 the Designating Party of the unauthorized disclosures, (b) use its best efforts to retrieve 6 all unauthorized copies of the Protected Material, (c) inform the person or persons to 7 whom unauthorized disclosures were made of all the terms of this Order, and (d) request 8 such person or persons to execute the “Acknowledgment an Agreement to Be Bound” 9 attached hereto as Exhibit A. 10 13. INADVERTANT PRODUCTION OF PRIVILEGED OR 11 OTHERWISE PROTECTED MATERIAL 12 When a Producing Party gives notice to Receiving Parties that certain inadvertently 13 produced material is subject to a claim of privilege or other protection, the obligations of 14 the Receiving Parties are those set forth in Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(b)(5)(B). 15 This provision is not intended to modify whatever procedure may be established in an e- 16 discovery order that provides for production without prior privilege review. Pursuant to 17 Federal Rule of Evidence 502(d) and (e), insofar as the parties reach an agreement on the 18 effect of disclosure of a communication or information covered by the attorney-client 19 privilege or work product protection, the parties may incorporate their agreement in the 20 stipulated protective order submitted to the court. 21 14. MISCELLANEOUS 22 A. Right to Further Relief. Nothing in this Order abridges the right of any 23 person to seek its modification by the Court in the future. 24 B. Right to Assert Other Objections. By stipulating to the entry of this 25 Protective Order, no Party waives any right it otherwise would have to object to disclosing 26 or producing any information or item on any ground not addressed in this Stipulated 27 Protective Order. Similarly, no Party waives any right to object on any ground to use in 28 evidence of any of the material covered by this Protective Order. 1 C. Filing Protected Material. A Party that seeks to file under seal any Protected 2 Material must comply with Local Civil Rule 79-5. Protected Material may only be filed 3 under seal pursuant to a court order authorizing the sealing of the specific Protected 4 Material. If a Party’s request to file Protected Material under seal is denied by the court, 5 then the Receiving Party may file the information in the public record unless otherwise 6 instructed by the court. 7 15. FINAL DISPOSITION 8 After the final disposition of this Action, as defined in paragraph 6, within 60 days 9 of a written request by the Designating Party, each Receiving Party must return all 10 Protected Material to the Producing Party or destroy such material. As used in this 11 subdivision, “all Protected Material” includes all copies, abstracts, compilations, 12 summaries, and any other format reproducing or capturing any of the Protected Material. 13 Whether the Protected Material is returned or destroyed, the Receiving Party must submit 14 a written certification to the Producing Party (and, if not the same person or entity, to the 15 Designating Party) by the 60-day deadline that (1) identifies (by category, where 16 appropriate) all the Protected Material that was returned or destroyed and (2) affirms that 17 the Receiving Party has not retained any copies, abstracts, compilations, summaries or 18 any other format reproducing or capturing any of the Protected Material. Notwithstanding 19 this provision, Counsel are entitled to retain an archival copy of all pleadings, motion 20 papers, trial, deposition, and hearing transcripts, legal memoranda, correspondence, 21 deposition and trial exhibits, expert reports, attorney work product, and consultant and 22 expert work product, even if such materials contain Protected Material. Any such archival 23 copies that contain or constitute Protected Material remain subject to this Protective Order 24 as set forth in Section 6 (DURATION). 25 / / / 26 / / / 27 / / / 28 / / / 1 16. VIOLATION 2 Any violation of this Order may be punished by appropriate measures including, 3 || without limitation, contempt proceedings and/or monetary sanctions. 4 |) IT IS SO STIPULATED, THROUGH COUNSEL OF RECORD. 5 6 Dated: September 23, 2025 Respectfully submitted, 7 MARLER CLARK, INC., PS 8 9 By: Frederic Gordon 10 Ilana Korchia William D. Marler 11 Attorneys for Plaintiff KRISTI WILLIAMSON

13 || Dated: September 23, 2025 Respectfully submitted, 14 ZELMS ERLICH LENKOV AND MACK 15 16 By: /s/ Clifford A. Clance 17 Clifford A. Clancey Tracey Miller 18 Attorneys for Defendant THE CHEESECAKE FACTORY 19 INCORPORATED 20 ORDER 09 GOOD CAUSE APPEARING, the Court hereby approves this Stipulation and 3 Protective Order. IT IS SO ORDERED. 25 DATED: September 23, 2025 26 HON. BOUGLAS F. McCORMICK UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE 28 L7/ Case No: 8:24-cv-02358-JWH-DFM OTINTTT ATTISXAT ARITA AYNTLUSL'(TIt?7nT TALMY

1 EXHIBIT A 2 ACKNOWLEDGMENT AND AGREEMENT TO BE BOUND 3 I, ____________________________, of ________________________________, 4 declare under penalty of perjury that I have read in its entirety and understand the 5 Stipulated Protective Order that was issued by the United States District Court for the 6 Central District of California on __________________ in the case of Kristi Williamson 7 v. The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated, Case No. 8:24-cv-02358-JWH-DFM. I agree to 8 comply with and to be bound by all the terms of this Stipulated Protective Order and I 9 understand and acknowledge that failure to so comply could expose me to sanctions and 10 punishment in the nature of contempt. I solemnly promise that I will not disclose in any 11 manner any information or item that is subject to this Stipulated Protective Order to any 12 person or entity except in strict compliance with the provisions of this Order. I further 13 agree to submit to the jurisdiction of the United States District Court for the Central 14 District of California for the purpose of enforcing the terms of this Stipulated Protective 15 Order, even if such enforcement proceedings occur after termination of this action. 16 I hereby appoint ____________________________, of _____________________ 17 as my California agent for service of process in connection with this action or any 18 proceeding related to enforcement of this Stipulated Protective Order. 19 Date: 20 City and State where sworn and signed: 21 Printed Name: 22 23 Signature: _________________________

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