The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit issued an order in the XRP case between the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Ripple Labs, Inc. The court mandated that the SEC must file its appeal by January 15, 2025. , setting a strict deadline.
Ripple Case Update: New SEC Filing Deadline
The order of the court, dated October 31, 2024, states unequivocally: “THEREFORE IT IS ORDERED that the Appellant’s brief must be filed on or before January 15, 2025. The appeal is dismissed as of January 15, 2025, if the report is that it has not been filed by then day. A motion for extension of time to file a brief or to seek other relief shall not reach the filing date.”
This strict guidance emphasizes that failure to comply will result in dismissal of the SEC complaint, underscoring the court’s insistence on compliance with procedural deadlines.
The court’s order follows recent controversy over the SEC’s Form C filing, which outlines specific issues the agency intends to address on appeal. In the XRP legal community, there was considerable speculation that the SEC missed the deadline for this important filing.
The SEC was able to submit Form C just before the mooted deadline of October 17, 2024. The actual cutoff was a point of contention, with discussions focusing on whether it fell on October 16 or 17. A missed deadline would have jeopardized the SEC’s ability to proceed with the appeal. However, legal experts note that while missing such a deadline is a procedural error, courts often give government agencies some leeway to correct these errors.
The court’s order elicited a remarkable reaction from legal experts involved in the XRP community. Pro-XRP advocate Bill Morgan commented on X: “At least the consequences of not meeting this deadline are clear.”
Commercial prosecutor and Bitcoin advocate Joe Carlasare commented: “This is a standard procedure.” Carlasare’s comments suggest that while the order is strict, it is consistent with general procedural guidelines in appellate cases, not with respect to previous SEC Form C filings.
To add further complexity, the upcoming US presidential election could greatly influence the SEC’s approach to the case. If former President Donald Trump is successful against Vice President Kamala Harris, the regulatory leadership could change. At the Bitcoin 2024 conference, Trump made sure to fire Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Gary Gensler on day one.
The statement fueled speculation that the new SEC chairman under the Trump administration may choose to drop the lawsuit against Ripple before the January 15 deadline. However, if Trump loses, the next big date is set for the Ripple vs. SEC.
At press time, XRP traded at $0.5117.
The featured image was created with DALL.E, a chart from TradingView.com
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