The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has reopened old wounds after a federal Judge grants the regulator’s request to file a new appeal against Ripple.
Ripple And SEC Legal Battle Continues
Ripple, the crypto firm behind XRP cryptocurrency, had secured a partial victory in July in its case against the SEC that had raged on for almost three years. However, the regulator has not taken this lying down as on Thursday, August 17, Judge Analisa Torres reportedly gave official approval to the SEC’s motion to file an interlocutory appeal against XRP cryptocurrency.
According to the court proceedings, the SEC will file its motion in court from Friday, August 18 until Friday, September 1. This gives the regulator the opportunity and ample time to develop and provide a compelling argument for its allegations of XRP being a security.
This is because the appeal will be focused on the judge’s decision on Ripple’s programmatic sales and direct sales and offerings of XRP tokens as a trade for goods and services.
The new filing is not an official approval of an appeal by the judge but a gateway for the SEC to file its motion. But regardless, this new development could be bad for Ripple who recently celebrated Judge Torres’ declaration that secondary sales of XRP did not count as a security.
Ripple’s Chief Executive Officer, Brad Garlinghouse, and Chief Learning Officer, Stuart Alderoty have addressed the SEC’s decision to put forward an appeal motion. They publicly opposed the SEC’s interlocutory appeal, detailing that the Judge’s ruling on July 13 refutes any allegations the SEC may harbor of XRP being a security.
“We oppose the SEC’s request for an interlocutory appeal. There is no extraordinary circumstance here that would justify departing from the rule requiring all issues as to all parties to be resolved before an appeal,” Alderoty stated in a Twitter post.
On his part, CEO Brad Garlinghouse commented:
Reminder – the request for appeal (even if granted) doesn’t change the fact that XRP is not a security. That’s not up for debate/trial. But the SEC continues to claim that Chris and I acted recklessly in believing that XRP is not a security. That’s utter nonsense.
SEC Regulator Criticizes Judge Ruling
The SEC’s move to file an interlocutory motion does not come as a surprise as the regulatory body has previously made complaints about the proceedings of Judge Torres’s ruling in the XRP case. The regulator made criticisms of the case’s outcome by questioning the ruling’s alignment with legal principles and stating that the verdict was “wrongly decided.”
The regulator has also been adamant about an interlocutory review and has stated that the case requires a higher review and better clarification by higher judicial authorities, to ensure legal proceedings are executed according to established laws and legal principles.
“Interlocutory review is warranted here. These two issues involve controlling questions of law on which there is substantial ground for differences of opinion, as reflected by an intra-district split that has already developed,” the SEC said in its new filing.
