Ripple’s legal team has firmly opposed the United States Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) appeal regarding the XRP decision.
SEC’s Appeal Grounded in Dissatisfaction
Ripple’s legal representatives have made a compelling argument, asserting that the SEC has not met the necessary requirements to seek an appeal. The crux of the matter lies in the SEC’s apparent “dissatisfaction” with a prior court ruling in July. This ruling declared that the XRP token did not primarily qualify as a security for retail investors.
Exceptional Circumstances for Interlocutory Appeal Absent
The legal team representing Ripple has emphatically pointed out that the SEC’s grounds for appeal lack the “exceptional circumstances required for an interlocutory appeal.” They have urged the judge to reject any request for an appeal or stay in this case.
Ripple states,
“The SEC has not even attempted to meet the standard for a stay, even after the Individual Defendants identified that omission in their pre-motion letter. The Individual Defendants write separately to oppose the SEC’s request. Ripple joins that opposition.”
The Ripple-SEC Legal Battle and SEC’s Move to Appeal
To provide context, in August, the SEC sought to appeal and halt a previous ruling from July. In that ruling, Judge Analisa Torres had determined that XRP did not fall under the SEC’s classification as a security. The SEC had argued that there were substantial differences of opinion on the applicable laws.
This legal battle began when the SEC initiated a lawsuit against Ripple, CEO Brad Garlinghouse, and co-founder Chris Larsen in December 2020. This move prompted several exchanges to delist the XRP token to avoid potential legal complications. However, following Judge Torres’ ruling, many of these exchanges expressed their intent to relist XRP or explore possibilities of doing so in the future.
Garlinghouse’s Perspective and SEC;s Ongoing Scrutiny
Brad Garlinghouse, CEO of Ripple, commented on the situation in an August 29th X post, saying,
“It’s unfortunate that so many in the US crypto community have to resort to the legal process to prove that this SEC is out of control and consistently wrong on the facts and the law.”
It’s worth noting that the SEC has been actively targeting several cryptocurrency firms in 2023, alleging securities violations. Notable cases include actions against Binance and Coinbase. Additionally, asset manager Grayscale achieved a significant legal victory against the SEC, leading to an appeal and a review of its application for a spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund.
The Path Forward
The civil lawsuit between the SEC and Ripple continues, with Judge Analisa Torres proposing a jury trial scheduled to begin in the second quarter of 2024. This legal battle remains a focal point in the cryptocurrency industry, with potential implications for the regulatory landscape. Stay tuned for further updates on this ongoing saga.
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