Judge Analisa Torres in Ripple lawsuit may have already decided whether XRP is a security

By Selena 03/13/23 3:40 PM

The cryptocurrency world anticipates the summary ruling in the legal dispute between Ripple and the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC), which is anticipated to be announced before the end of March.

In the most recent development, US attorney Jeremy Hogan speculated that presiding judge Analisa Torres might have already resolved whether XRP is a security.

Hogan, a pro-XRP attorney, reached this conclusion after pointing out that in her most recent decision, the judge discussed the viewpoint of XRP holders who purchased the cryptocurrency and quoted the securities law case Marine Bank v. Weaver at least three times. In another passage from the lawsuit, Hogan questioned whether the item sold was generally recognized as a security.

Read the language here. A provision in an agreement gave the investors a share of the company’s profits. Yet, the Court said the provision ITSELF is not a security. That’s a major focus of #XRPHolder’s Amicus Brief. #XRP itself is NOT a security and neither are secondary sales.

— John E Deaton (@JohnEDeaton1) March 9, 2023

The attorney’s claim follows the judge’s 57-page ruling on both parties’ “Daubert” applications to exclude expert testimony from the summary judgment. As a result of the decision, neither Ripple nor the SEC can be regarded as the winners because the court partially granted and partially denied both parties’ motions.

By the decision, judge Torres disqualified Patrick Doody, the SEC’s senior expert witness entrusted with examining XRP buyers’ expectations.

Nonetheless, Ripple’s specialists on the distinctions between its contracts and those in the Howey case, the tax treatment of XRP, the accounting treatment of XRP, and currency specialists on XRP were all permitted to continue speaking on the record.

Despite the Daubert motions finding not having a clear winner, CTO Stuart Alderoty argued that the outcome was in the payment firm’s favor and expressed confidence in the case. “As we have said throughout, we have always felt confident about our case and with each ruling, even more so,” Alderoty said.

John Deaton, on the other hand, thinks the SEC committed a serious mistake when it named Brad Garlinghouse and Chris Larsen in its enforcement action against the corporation. Deaton said that rather than concentrating on people not directly accountable for the alleged securities violations, the SEC should have concentrated only on Ripple, the business that issued XRP.

Deaton first claimed that the case’s judge had charged SEC attorneys with putting their interests ahead of upholding the law. The attorney questioned whether the SEC could adequately enforce the law if its agents disobeyed it.

Former attorney and co-founder of the permissionless Layer 2 platform Evernode XRPL Scott Chamberlain said the lawsuit would probably have five outcomes. Chamberlain predicts that the case might be resolved, setting precedents for the designation of XRP as a security and the court’s authority over sales conducted outside.

In a previous letter, Ripple defended its fair notice defense by citing a recent Supreme Court decision. The filing was made in reaction to a decision that restricts the US government’s power to charge US taxpayers who fail to disclose their offshore bank accounts with fines.

To stress the importance of regulatory clarity in the cryptocurrency business, Ripple emphasized the importance of federal legislation that clearly defines what behaviors are forbidden.

XRP/USD 4-hour chart | Source: TradingView

On the other side, the price of XRP is still fluctuating along with the market. At publication, the token had weekly gains of about 2% and was trading at $0.37.

Currently, XRP has a market cap of roughly $18.8 billion. So, it is uncertain how XRP will trade by the end of the week as the market responds to the ramifications of the U.S. financial industry.