- Ripple and the SEC file final briefs for the long-standing case to move to summary judgment
- The filings have sparked speculations on the likely ruling to be made by presiding Judge Analisa Torres
The court case between Ripple and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is nearing an end as both parties have not filed their final briefs urging the judge to rule in their favor in summary judgment.
According to a Reuters report, the filings from both Ripple and the SEC alleged that the arguments of the other amount to an attempt to bend the law.
In Ripple’s brief, the fintech company states that the SEC is seeking to rule that XRP is an investment contract but has failed to present any contract, investor rights, or issuer obligations document as proof. Ripple calls the move an attempt by the SEC to “rewrite the statutes that define its authority,”
Similarly, the SEC argues in its brief that Ripple is relying on “made-up” tests that ignore U.S. Securities laws. It notes that while there may not be documented contracts backing the sales of XRP, Ripple and its executives made statements that were the type that would lead investors to expect profits from the company’s efforts to develop uses for the token.
The latest submissions have also sparked debates among crypto market observers. ‘WKahneman,’ a pseudonymous XRP aficionado, opined in a tweet that the SEC’s argument that every sale of XRP from 2013 to 2020 was essentially a security offering may not have much merit.
This is because it would raise the question of if every other purchase is expected to go up in value because of the supplier’s effort is a security with or without signing an investment contract.
In contrast, Attorney John Deaton, a prominent XRP community member and the founder of Crypto Law media company, shared that the SEC’s argument could be one of the biggest dangers to Ripple in his opinion. According to Deaton, the application of security laws does not focus only on sales or require that a sale or transfer of the underlying asset occur for a company to be liable.
Next step in the case to come in a few months
With the final briefs filed by both parties, the case now rests on Judge Analisa Torres of the U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, to rule in the coming months.
Previously, the court had also accepted briefs from companies that have stated that they rely on XRP technology, as well as briefs from groups of XRP holders who say the SEC has not shown purchasers were influenced by or are aware of Ripple’s ‘statements.’
Judge Torres could either choose to pass a ruling on the case without trial or narrow down the dispute before sending it to trial based on her prerogative.
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