Pro-XRP Lawyer Hints Judge May Have Already Decided on XRP Classification

If the lawyer is right, it may call for celebration within the XRP community as it would mean the judge does not believe XRP to be a security.

Attorney Jeremy Hogan has hinted that the judge in the United States Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) case against Ripple may have already formed an opinion on whether or not XRP is security.

The pro-XRP lawyer who has followed the case closely hinted at this while sharing an interesting discovery with the community in a tweet today. Hogan pointed out that the judge, in her latest ruling, had cited Marine Bank v. Weaver, a securities law case from the 80s, at least thrice while discussing the thoughts of XRP holders when they purchased the token. As explained by Hogan sharing an excerpt from the case, the precedent asks whether what was sold was “commonly” considered security. 

In her recent Order, the Judge cited the Marine Bank v. Weaver case at least THREE times when discussing “what a reasonable XRP purchaser believed” when they bought XRP issue.

It’s a Supreme Court case which asks whether the thing sold was “commonly” thought of as a security. pic.twitter.com/9J8uz8gSnN

— Jeremy Hogan (@attorneyjeremy1) March 9, 2023

Attorney John E. Deaton responding to Hogan, pointed out that the excerpt reveals that while a provision in an agreement gave investors a share of the company’s profits, the court held that the agreement could not be termed a security. The attorney representing thousands of XRP holders as a friend of the court in the legal battle noted that similarly, one of the focuses of the amicus brief filed on behalf of XRP holders was to point out that XRP itself and secondary market sales did not represent securities.

Hogan agreeing with Deaton noted that after reading the ruling on Daubert motions, he believes the amicus brief by XRP holders could significantly impact the case outcome.

In a follow-up tweet, Deaton expressed confidence that the judge would deny the SEC’s summary judgment motion, citing the removal of the SEC expert opinion on the perception of XRP holders to support his claim.

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As recently reported, the judge’s ruling on Daubert motions is already widely considered a victory for XRP holders. Aside from the instance highlighted above by Deaton, the judge also ruled out an SEC expert opinion on the risks to the XRP Ledger if Ripple “disappeared.”

Hogan’s latest observation potentially gives insight into where the judge is leaning in her summary judgment ruling. If the lawyer is right, it may call for celebration within the XRP community as it would mean the judge does not believe XRP to be a security.

The community continues to expect the summary judgment ruling in the SEC enforcement case that has spanned over two years in the coming weeks.

Deaton has asserted that his preferred outcome is for the judge to declare XRP and secondary market sales are not securities, even if Ripple loses.

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