Ripple Prepares Response as SEC Appeals Judge’s Ruling on XRP

• The SEC is seeking permission to file an interlocutory appeal challenging the landmark SEC vs. Ripple verdict.
• Attorney Jeremy Hogan insists the SEC was not appealing whether XRP was a security but its losses on the programmatic and individual sales issues.
• General Counsel at Ripple Stuart Alderoty has revealed that the exchange would respond shortly.

As speculated by numerous experts in the field, the U.S. SEC is planning to appeal Judge Analisa Torres’ verdict that the Ripple XRP token is not a security. The SEC’s statement, in part, reads: the SEC seeks to certify the Court’s holding that Defendants’ “Programmatic” offers and sales to XRP buyers over crypto asset trading platforms and Ripple’s “Other Distributions” in exchange for labor and services did not involve the offer or sale of securities.

Judge Torres’s ruling, which was revealed last month, temporarily put to rest the much-debated issue of XRP. In her statement, she claimed that XRP was a token and not a security. However, the SEC is now moving to file what is called an interlocutory appeal. An interlocutory appeal is an appeal of a non-final order issued during the course of litigation.

Ever since the news of SEC’s appeal plans broke out, the crypto community has swarmed to Twitter to express their opinions on the matter. General Counsel at Ripple Stuart Alderoty argued that the SEC did not have the right to appeal just yet, which is why they are asking permission to file an interlocutory appeal. He also added that Ripple would file their response shortly. 

Attorney Jeremy Hogan insisted that the SEC was not appealing whether XRP was a security but just its losses on the programmatic and individual sales issues. Hogan added, “But if the SEC wins the appeal on sales, then Ripple couldn’t use exchanges to facilitate sales. And the big Q: would exchanges keep XRP listed? I think yes, as long as they can verify the sales are not being made by Ripple.”

Journalist Eleanor Terrett responded by saying that from everything she’s learned about interlocutory appeals from the brilliant legal minds in the crypto space, they are notoriously tricky to get approved. “The @SECGov will need to get blessings from both Judge Torres and the Second Circuit in order for this to be granted.”