Developments in the SEC-Ripple lawsuit have been inconsistent, but the XRP community kept an eye on every development in the case. The onlookers have seen several motions filed from both ends- some resulting in being accepted, while the Judge denied some others. However, whenever the wheels are set in motion, a flood of back-to-back updates follows. Similarly, the latest scenario also comes with a string of new information.
Before getting into the latest development, it is worth recalling that attorney John Deaton and a group of XRP holders filed a motion in March ’21 to intervene in the case. In October last year, their request was rejected by the court. However, they managed to obtain the amici status, enabling them to file “friends of the court” briefs.
This May, the ‘HODLers attorney’ requested the court permission to file an amicus brief outlining the opinions of SEC expert Patrick Doody. In one of the latest developments, the SEC has filed a “heavily redacted” letter asking the said amici status to be revoked. The plaintiffs substantiated their argument with five reasons. The fourth reason stood out and asserted that granting permission would “duplicate” the defendants’ efforts. Ripple, on its part, remains opposed to the same.
The new ruling in Ripple’s favor?
In May, the defendants filed another request for Admissions [RFAs] motion. The defendants contended that the SEC’s responses to its quizzing were quite “deficient.” Resultantly, they asked the judge to order the SEC to amend its responses to these RFAs. They additionally wanted the SEC to undertake a reasonable inquiry that included questioning of the SEC speakers to verify authenticity.
Leaving no loophole for the SEC, Ripple had also argued that if the regulatory body persisted in claiming that it lacked sufficient information to respond, it should be mandated to supplement its responses and explain “in detail” why it could not admit or deny claims.
So now, in the latest ruling, Judge Sarah Netburn has released her order w.r.t. Ripples said RFAs. The order, as such, is granted in part. The SEC was asked to file amended responses to one of its policies, employee reliefs, and other queries. It is noteworthy that some of SEC’s RFA objections are sustained.
Per people from the community, Ripple scores a point this time as the judge is covertly “pinning the SEC down” on the Fair Notice Defense front. Opining on the same, attorney Jeremy Hogan exclaimed that he “looove(s)” how she’s making the SEC draft the same.