SEC Refuses to Postpone Its Appeal Against Ripple, Insists on Filing Opening Brief Today

Ripple CLO Stuart Alderoty expresses frustration with the SEC’s refusal to postpone the filing deadline of its opening appeal brief.  

With the SEC opening appeal brief due January 15, Alderoty updated XRP community members that the regulatory agency, under Gary Gensler’s leadership, is still insisting on filing the brief by today’s deadline. 

According to him, Ripple had reached out to the SEC to postpone the filing to a later date. However, the commission refused. The Ripple CLO characterized the refusal as a waste of time and taxpayers’ money.

Nonetheless, he expressed confidence in Ripple’s legal position, indicating that the appellate court will still affirm the company’s victory. 

Ripple CLO Criticizes Gensler, Says Ripple Will Work with New SEC Leadership to End Lawsuit

Meanwhile, Alderoty took a swipe at the outgoing SEC chair, who will resign on January 20. He highlighted January 20 as the date Gensler’s war on crypto will end. This outcome could transform the SEC’s approach to crypto under a new leadership chaired by pro-crypto advocate Paul Atkins. 

In anticipation of this transition, Alderoty suggested that Ripple hopes to collaborate with the incoming SEC leadership to resolve the multi-year lawsuit. 

Top Lawyer Says Parties Can’t Change Deadline 

Meanwhile, in response to Alderoty’s statement, famous legal expert James Farrell, citing local rule, stressed that only the court clerk can change deadlines, not the parties. 

According to him, the clerk will only change the deadline under extraordinary circumstances, like the death of a family member. 

“Until the clerk agrees, the deadline still stands. So even if both sides agreed, the SEC would still have to file tomorrow (January 15),” Farrell remarked. 

Regarding the potential settlement of the lawsuit, Farrel pointed out that the SEC might only consider a settlement after the parties have filed the appropriate appeal briefs due to the change of administration. 

Farrell highlighted the end of April as the potential timeframe for the conclusion of the briefing schedule. 

Parties Reach New Agreement 

In the meantime, the parties have agreed to file a deferred appendix- a compilation of relevant documents and evidence for the appeals – 21 days after Ripple submits its opposition brief. 

Popular defense lawyer James K. Filan shared this development yesterday. He suggested that the recent filing does not change the SEC’s opening brief deadline, which is due today, January 15.  

#XRPCommunity #SECGov v. #Ripple #XRP @Ripple
The parties have filed a Stipulation stating they will file a deferred appendix for the cross-appeals 21 days after the appellee’s brief is served. The @SECGov‘s opening brief still must be filed by tomorrow.https://t.co/MzmFpFuyTH

— James K. Filan 🇺🇸🇮🇪 (@FilanLaw) January 14, 2025

With Ripple expected to file its opposing arguments 45 days after the SEC submits its opening appeal brief, the parties will file their respective deferred appendix around March 21, 2025. 

XRP Soars Despite Upcoming Filing of SEC’s Appeal Brief  

Meanwhile, investors are unbothered about the SEC’s upcoming appeal brief, as the price of XRP soared tremendously overnight. XRP, which traded at an intraday low of $2.52 yesterday, is changing hands at $2.84. 

Interestingly, XRP has increased 12.64% over the past day and 22.9% over the past seven days. The coin’s trading volume has exploded by 19.01% to $11.98 billion at press time.