The lawsuit between Ripple and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has had a new development. Accordingly, U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres ruled that individuals holding the company’s XRP token cannot act as defendants in Ripple’s ongoing lawsuit.
Judge rejects XRP holders bid to join SEC against Ripple case as defendants
Reportedly, the XRP Army has announced it will file briefs with court friends to allow them to participate in the lawsuit as defendants. And they aim to support Ripple in claiming that XRP offering does not violate securities laws.
Furthermore, according to Law360, Judge Torres asserted that allowing XRP holders to participate in the lawsuit would compel the SEC to take enforcement action against them. She added that it would also delay the case Ripple and token holders have for a quick resolution.
Not all of it is terrible news, though. The judge determined that the token holder could participate as amicus curiae – a party not participating in the case but authorized by the court to advise or provide information.
“The court concludes that amici status strikes a proper balance between permitting movants to assert their interest in this case and allowing the parties to remain in control of the litigation,” Torres stated.
The lawyer who closely followed the case, James K. Filan, had a more positive view regarding this decision.
3/3 The Court contemplates that such assistance will be most beneficial during briefing on dispositive motions, but may exercise its discretion to request or deny further applications as appropriate.” Big Congratulations to @JohnEDeaton1. Decision in @CryptoLawUS library, above.
— James K. Filan ???? (@FilanLaw) October 4, 2021
In the same vein, adviser to Ripple, Andrew Ceresney, said that they are pleased with the outcome that XRP holders can now share their meaningful perspectives with the court.
Meanwhile, Ripple requests an extension of time to October 8th to respond to the SEC motion to compel Ripple to search & produce recordings of Ripple meetings where Garlinghouse, Larsen & other key employees spoke on topics relevant to a dispute in the lawsuit.
Source: James K. Filan
In a motion to intervene filed in March, the XRP holders claimed that they stood to lose billions should the regulator win the case. It also questioned the SEC’s claimed motives of protecting investors.
“Claiming to protect investors, the SEC is seeking $1.3 billion in allegedly ill-gotten gains from the named defendants, but by alleging that today’s XRP may constitute unregistered securities, the SEC caused over $15 billion in losses for XRP holders,” the filing said.
Read more:
- Ethereum’s Joe Lubin Voiced His Support For The SEC In The Lawsuit With Ripple
- XRP Price Has Been Hovering Around $1 For Quite Some Time, Will It Still Revive In The SEC Lawsuit?