Deaton Says This Is the Only Victory the SEC Can Get in the Ripple Case

The attorney does not believe Ripple will be asked to pay disgorgement. 

Attorney John E. Deaton has asserted that the only victory the United States Securities and Exchange Commission will likely get in its case against Ripple is that the blockchain payments sold XRP as a security from 2013 to 2017.

The lawyer representing over 75k XRP holders as a friend of the court in the case made this known in a series of tweets on Wednesday. Deaton based his view on the SEC’s all-in approach, including past, present, and future XRP sales.

“Personally, based on the way the SEC chose to pled this case (an almost all or nothing approach – ie all sales – past, present and future are unregistered securities) I believe the only victory for SEC is that Ripple offered XRP as unregistered security between 2013-2107 [2017],” Deaton wrote.

Personally, based on the way the SEC chose to pled this case (an almost all or nothing approach – ie all sales – past, present and future are unregistered securities) I believe the only victory for SEC is that Ripple offered XRP as unregistered security between 2013-2107.

— John E Deaton (@JohnEDeaton1) February 15, 2023

Consequently, the attorney believes the regulatory agency will neither be able to obtain an injunction against XRP sales nor a disgorgement payment, citing a fine as its best possible outcome. Nonetheless, the attorney says all of these depend on if the judge sees things his way.

Meanwhile, the attorney is convinced that a jury trial remains highly possible. Deaton made a case for this last month, asserting that the judge could deny both summary judgment motions, citing “a genuine issue of material facts as to the existence of a common enterprise.”

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It is worth noting that the SEC v. Ripple case now awaits the judge’s decision, as both parties have submitted all required briefs. Deaton recently reiterated his belief that the case will not end with an out-of-court settlement, at least not before the judge gives her ruling.

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