Key SEC vs Ripple Takeaways:
- Judge Torres ruled in favor of John Deaton to represent the XRP community in court.
- The attorney will have the right to file official briefs and influence the judge’s decisions.
- XRP did not react to the news, and continued to consolidate.
YEREVAN (CoinChapter.com) – On Oct. 4 the Court ruled in favor of granting XRP holders the permission to stand as amici curiae (friend to the court) in the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) lawsuit against XRP’s native blockchain startup Ripple Labs. Attorney John Deaton, the creator of the news blog CryptoLaw, will represent over 22,000 XRP holders in Court.
In hindsight, the SEC filed the lawsuit back in Dec. 2020 and accused Ripple Labs of selling $1.3 billion worth of XRP illegally, as unregistered securities. The law enforcement agency also implied that all sales of XRP tokens since 2013 have been transfers of unregistered securities as well, which brings thousands of holders under scrutiny.
Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse and General Counsel Stuart Alderony tweeted the news, calling the Court’s ruling a “yet another positive development”.
Mr. Deaton also tweeted the full document, with the details of the legal standard for a motion to intervene. In his interview with FOX News, the attorney specified, that the main reason he got involved in the case, is to help prove that XRP holders are not in “common enterprise” with Ripple Labs.
Also read: All cryptocurrencies except Ripple (XRP) are speculative, former US Treasurer claims
What does it mean?
In plain English, it means that after months of denying the XRP holders representation in court, the judge ruled in favor of the motion. Mr. Deaton will have the right to file an official brief which the judge will take into account when making her final decision.
Attorney Jeremy Hogan, who is actively involved in the case, also commented on the developments. He pointed out the irony of the situation, where XRP holders have to defend themselves against an organization that is there to help them in the first place.
Also read: Ripple ready to settle with the SEC, but there’s a catch, CEO Brad Garlinghouse says
XRP daily chart
XRP token continued to consolidate despite the good news. The price action moved sideways, mimicking Bitcoin rather than exhibiting a pronounced bias. The digital asset still struggled with a significant support-turned-resistance line at $1.05. The XRP/USD exchange rate stood at 1.04 in the early European session Tuesday.
However, the digital asset managed to trade over its 20-day exponential moving average (EMA-20; blue wave) for several days, which will provide additional support.
Also read: Bitcoin (BTC) rallies 20% to cross $49,000 before correcting again
