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The SEC lawsuit against Ripple will be heard by a jury in the second quarter of 2024 and will focus on whether Ripple executives sold unregistered securities, not on the status of XRP.
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Lawyers predict the outcome of the trial by the end of the summer of 2024 with possible appeals in 2025; the trial clears up specific allegations against Ripple executives, separate from XRP’s broader legal issues.
Judge Torres announced that the lawsuit between the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Ripple Labs will be scheduled for trial by jury in the second calendar quarter of 2024.
Important dates
Judge Torres set several important dates for both sides:
- August 23, 2023 A: Deadline for both parties to provide any blackout dates for litigation.
- December 4, 2023 : Deadline for parties to submit any motions. Objections to these proposals must be submitted by December 18, 2023.
- December 4, 2023 .: The parties are required to file all pre-trial documents and deliver to the court one copy of each document.
- The final date for the pre-trial conference will be set once the final date for the trial has been confirmed.
The essence of the test
Despite some misconceptions, this test is not related to determining the status of the XRP token as a security. Judge Torres has already ruled that the XRP token is not a security.
Instead, the jury will discuss a much narrower topic: whether Ripple’s top managers, Brad Garlinghouse and Chris Larsen, assisted in the sale of unregistered securities.
It is important to understand that this trial will not reassess or discuss any points of law previously identified by Judge Torres. The focus remains solely on the specific allegations against Garlinghouse and Larsen.
Reactions and clarifications
Lawyer Jeremy Hogan expressed his opinion , assessing that a final decision on this case can only be made by the end of summer 2024. If there is an appeal, it could be extended until 2025. Hogan notes that delays can actually be beneficial. for XRP and Ripple.
CryptoLaw US, in an effort to be clear, highlighted that upcoming trial does not call into question Ripple itself or the legal status of the XRP token. The lawsuit simply aims to resolve the final set of disputed facts, as outlined on pages 30-34 of Judge Torres’ decision.
It is understood that while the broader legal issues surrounding XRP have been resolved, the roles of key Ripple executives remain under intense scrutiny from the court.