With the cryptocurrency sector still waiting for the gavel to drop and officially mark the end of the protracted legal standoff between blockchain company Ripple and the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the court has approved new remedies briefing deadlines.
Indeed, the revised schedule permits the SEC to submit its opening brief by March 22, Ripple’s opposition is due on April 22, and the regulator’s reply is due by May 6, according to the court information shared by defense attorney James K. Filan in his recent Ripple SEC lawsuit update on March 14.
As a reminder, Judge Analisa Torres ruled in July 2023 that Ripple’s sales of XRP to retail buyers did not constitute securities sales, but the institutional XRP sales were, in fact, securities. Hence, the sides are now trying to come to an agreement regarding the damages Ripple has to pay.
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SEC’s request approved
Back on February 27, the SEC had requested the above change to the remedies briefing deadlines, including the agency’s opening brief, the blockchain company’s opposition, and the SEC’s reply, as shared by the former federal prosecutor at the time and reported by Finbold.
Explaining the reasoning behind this extension request, the regulatory watchdog’s legal team highlighted it as the ‘good cause’ under the Federal Rule of Civil Procedure, as well as stressed the SEC’s diligence in “completing remedies-related discovery and briefing.”
Moreover, the request mentioned that Ripple, which had earlier received an extension for the initial discovery deadline from Magistrate Judge Sarah Netburn, has agreed to the SEC’s petition, as it also means having nine additional days to file its own opening brief.
On March 1, not long after sharing the SEC’s motion to change the briefing schedule, Filan added in the comments that the judge had granted it.
When will SEC vs. Ripple end?
Meanwhile, as the crypto community is at the edge of its seats, watching every Ripple SEC news article with care and looking for clues on when will SEC vs. Ripple end, the case might not come to its final conclusion before 2026 due to potential appeals in the complex legal battle.
Adding to the confusion is the recent note by the European Corporate Governance Institute, which observed that “the court found that XRP (…) was not a security when sold to the public on an exchange, but it is when sold directly to institutional investors.”
Commenting on this note, shared by XRP influencer WrathofKahneman, lawyer Bill Morgan observed it was “not the most helpful statement,” as well as pointed out that:
“The token itself is never a security but can be sold as part of a transaction or scheme that is a security (investment contract). Even some people in the XRP community are still being tripped up on this point.”
That said, XRP, the token at the center of the lawsuit, was at press time trading at $0.6242, recording a 10.24% decline on the day, dropping 0.62% across the week but still holding onto the monthly gain of 12.53%, according to the most recent chart data on March 15.
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