Court Sets Rules as Suit Enters Settlement Phase

Per an X post, top lawyer James K. Filan shared an update that crypto payment company Ripple Labs and the United States regulator SEC have submitted their schedules to Judge Analisa Torres, the presiding judge of the Southern District of New York regarding the next phase of the XRP lawsuit which involves remedies discovery and briefing.

XRP Lawsuit: Permissible Discovery Terms Shared

According to the SEC’s letter to the federal judge which was dated November 9, both parties have decided that the permissible discovery in the settlement negotiation would encompass events that took place before the U.S. regulator filed the initial complaint against the crypto payment firm in connection to XRP. 

From there, the SEC is requesting a 90-day window from the point of entry of the scheduling order to enable it to conduct some discoveries that are related to remedies. Ripple, on the other hand, does not have any challenge with this proposal so long as it sticks to pre-complaint discovery. 

Precisely, it is limiting its consent to discoveries that are connected to only events that preceded the complaint from the SEC.
The document stated clearly that the fintech firm still retains the authorization to oppose any post-compliant discoveries that may be raised by the SEC. Eventually, Ripple may go as far as petitioning the court if it permits the SEC’s proposal and the extension of deadlines. 

Additionally, Ripple was given 45 days from the entry of the scheduling order to present a superseding report by Anthony M. Bracco, who testified earlier this year.

SEC Granted Permission to Depose Witness

In the next 90 days after the scheduling order, the SEC gets to depose Bracco. Based on permission granted by the court, the U.S. regulator may decide to serve a rebuttal expert report or could choose to submit a declaration of a summary witness to rebut Bracco’s work. In the long run, if any of such reports show up, Ripple reserves the right to object to it, per the letter to Judge Torres.

It is worth noting that no third-party discovery requests will be honored without receiving approval from the court, as stated by the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.

The schedule already points to a lengthy and bumpy road ahead, however, this aligns with prior projections from pro-XRP lawyer John Deaton who believes a lot of back and forth will ensue before a final settlement offering is reached. He believes a $20 million or lower settlement can be considered a 99.9% success story for Ripple Labs.

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