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- Ripple’s legal maneuvering in the SEC case intensified as it filed a Motion to Strike against new expert materials submitted by the SEC.
- The motion challenges the SEC’s late submission of crucial accounting analysis and substantive conclusions regarding remedies.
On Monday, April 22, the Ripple vs SEC case took an interesting turn with Defense attorney James Filan sharing key developments in the ongoing case. Ripple has lodged a Motion to Strike against the recent expert materials submitted by the SEC in support of its Motion for Remedies and Entry of Final Judgment. In the court filing, Ripple urges the Court to disregard the SEC’s latest submissions endorsing its opening brief and request for final judgment, per the Crypto News Flash report.
The Ripple lawyers argued:
“The parties engaged in more than three months of remedies discovery. During that time, Ripple served a supplemental expert report on disgorgement and the SEC deposed Ripple’s disgorgement expert. The SEC waited until the filing of its remedies motion to submit the Fox Declaration setting forth its remedies theories and calculations.”
Ripple has asserted that the Fox Declaration contains crucial accounting analysis and substantive conclusions regarding remedies that the Federal Rule of Civil Procedure and the court’s orders mandated the SEC to disclose during discovery. Ripple has accused the SEC of submitting these materials belatedly, which it claims goes against the purpose of Rule 37 (c) (1) aimed at preventing such tactics.
Following Monday’s development, the XRP price surged 6% shooting past $0.55. With this, XRP has extended its weekly gains to more than 10%.
More About The Fox Declaration
The Fox Declaration, attributed to SEC expert witness Andrea Fox, comprises a declaration form and two accompanying exhibits. Andrea Fox serves as an accountant in the SEC enforcement division.
Ripple contends that Andrea Fox provided expert testimony regarding Ripple’s accounts and the appropriate penalties for XRP sales to institutional investors. Ripple insists that the SEC should have disclosed both the identity of the expert witness and her testimony during the discovery phase.
Furthermore, Ripple emphasized that the SEC categorized Fox as a summary witness rather than an expert witness. According to Ripple, summary witnesses are not expected to present new information.
In response to Ripple’s claims, the SEC has opposed the motion. Additionally, both parties have reached an agreement for Ripple to propose a five-business-day window for the SEC to file an opposition brief to the motion.
Ripple cuts Down Penalty Payment from $2 Billion to $10 Million
Ripple Labs has responded to the United States Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) motion for remedies and the entry of final judgment by disputing the SEC’s requested amount of $876,308,712 in disgorgement and $198,150,940 in prejudgment interest. Instead, Ripple has offered to pay a maximum penalty of $10 million, a significant reduction from the civil penalty sought by the SEC.
In its opposition filing, Ripple informed the court that it has implemented changes in its XRP sales practices, acquired licenses for selling XRP outside the U.S., and revised its contracts to address concerns raised by the court. While acknowledging these adjustments, Ripple disagreed with the SEC’s proposed remedies, characterizing them as indicative of administrative overreach. Ripple criticized the SEC’s request for injunctive relief, citing it as speculation regarding potential future violations without substantial evidence. .
