Besides the developments in the lawsuit by the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) against Ripple over the sale of XRP tokens, the company’s other long-running legal battle in California is recording increased interest.
In particular, Ripple has been facing a class action since 2018, where XRP investors sued the company, and its CEO, Brad Garlinghouse. In the lawsuit, the plaintiffs claim that the company sold XRP as an unregistered security and are seeking damages for the losses they suffered. Additionally, they are requesting that the court declare XRP a security.
Under the latest update, United States defense attorney James Filan, in a tweet on February 7, revealed that lawyer John Deaton would be joining the matter, filing a motion as an amicus brief. It’s worth noting that Deaton is representing XRP holders in the Ripple v.SEC matter.
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Filan noted that the filing by Deaton will include XRP holders worldwide, alongside other 75,890 holders in the SEC case who have disagreed with the plaintiff’s arguments. Notably, the case by lead plaintiff Bradley Sostack also has three lawsuits, including Zakinov, Oconer, and Greenwald, and they have since consolidated into one.
Deaton’s objection
According to Deaton, the court should not grant the request to classify XRP as a security because, while some XRP holders view it as such, the majority do not and believe it should be regulated. Deaton argues that the opinions of a small number of complainants should not determine the status of XRP as an unregistered security.
“John Deaton will argue that those small number of plaintiffs in Zakinov cannot fairly represent so many who disagree with them, including XRP Holders in places where XRP is not even considered a security,” Filan said.
Furthermore, the proposed class action lawsuit is not restricted to Ripple’s direct sales of XRP but encompasses all token sales, including secondary sales and sales, made internationally in countries where XRP has already been deemed not a security.
Impact on XRP
Overall, the case, alongside the SEC lawsuit, is expected to give a clear direction on the classification of XRP. Notably, the SEC is suing Ripple for selling XRP tokens as unregulated securities, and both parties are waiting for the final judgment, having filed final submissions.
The parties have expressed optimism about winning the matter. In this line, with Filan projecting that the case might be resolved before March 31, Ripple’s General Counsel, Stuart Alderoty, has termed the case ‘misguided.’
XRP price analysis
Overall, with the Ripple lawsuits continuing to attract attention, investors are now focusing on XRP and how the matter will likely influence the token’s price, which is currently trading mostly in tandem with the general market. By press time, XRP was valued at $0.40 with weekly losses of less than 1%.
The token is currently controlling a market cap of about $20.09 billion.
