The SEC asked Judge Torres to put the Ripple case on hold during the appeal, mentioning multiple other pending court cases that could be affected depending on the appeal’s outcome
The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is moving to appeal a court decision in its lawsuit against Ripple Labs.
The regulator sent a letter to the presiding Judge Analisa Torres on Aug.9, stating it believed her decision requires interlocutory review. Almost a month ago, the court ruled that the retail sales of XRP on cryptocurrency exchanges are not securities, while institutional sales violate the existing securities-related laws.
The SEC now requests the ruling to be reviewed while the case is still pending. It asked the judge to put the case on hold during the appeal, as there are many pending court cases depending on the case outcome (e.g. its lawsuits against Binance and Coinbase over alleged securities violations).
The regulator added it seeks to certify the court’s decision regarding individual sales, considering another judge’s decision in SEC lawsuit against Terraform Labs. In this case, the court rejected Torres ruling, which Terraform Labs cited to back its arguments. Instead, the judge concluded that cryptocurrencies sold on exchanges could also be securities.
Therefore, the SEC noted that: “These two issues involve controlling questions of law on which there is substantial ground for differences of opinion, as reflected by an intra-district split that has already developed.” The regulator believes that interlocutory review would permit to avoid the protracted remedies phase litigation happening twice. The SEC claims it would not only simplify any possible trial but also help avoiding the possibility of two trials and related piecemeal litigation. This statement clearly announces its intention to appeal a final decision, should it not be in SEC favour.
