Ripple XRP Lawsuit: Lawyer Predicts SEC Appeal In Case Judgement, Here’s Why

The Ripple XRP lawsuit saga has taken the crypto market by storm, with the latest ruling from Judge Analisa Torres igniting further debate. Ripple was ordered to pay a $125 million fine for violating securities laws in 1,278 institutional sale transactions.

This verdict comes amid heightened speculation about the potential impact on the broader digital assets space and crypto regulation. As the dust settles, pro-XRP lawyer MetaLawMan predicts that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is likely to appeal the judgment, setting the stage for yet another legal battle.

Ripple XRP Lawsuit: Lawyer Predicts Potential SEC Appeal

In a recent podcast with Scott Melker, MetaLawMan said that the SEC is almost certain to appeal the ruling. One key issue for the potential appeal is the court’s decision on disgorgement—a remedy that allows the SEC to recover gains without proving investor losses.

This ruling could have a profound impact on the SEC’s enforcement strategy, affecting not only the Ripple XRP lawsuit but also other pending and future cases. According to MetaLawMan, this change in the legal landscape has created a split in circuit court decisions, with some courts requiring proof of investor losses and others not. This inconsistency could prompt the SEC to challenge the ruling in hopes of solidifying its authority in securities law enforcement.

Meanwhile, another significant issue he pointed out is whether tokens traded on secondary markets constitute securities transactions. Judge Torres ruled that XRP sales by Ripple on exchanges did not violate securities laws, a decision that could have far-reaching implications for other crypto exchanges like Coinbase, Binance, and Kraken.

The SEC is likely to want to prevent this precedent from snowballing into a broader challenge to its regulatory reach.

Also Read: Pro-XRP Lawyer Enjoining Elon Musk To Integrate XRP To X Payments

Will Ripple Cross-Appeal?

If the SEC decides to appeal, MetaLawMan said that Ripple is also expected to launch a cross-appeal. He pointed out that Ripple might argue that the court’s decision on institutional sales and On-Demand Liquidity (ODL) transactions was incorrect.

Meanwhile, he predicts that Ripple could contend that these sales do not meet the criteria of an investment contract as outlined by the Howey test. The test is a key legal standard used to determine whether a transaction qualifies as a security.

The recent ruling by Judge Torres, which came after extensive delays, marks a pivotal moment in the three-year-long Ripple XRP lawsuit. Although Ripple has been ordered to pay a substantial fine, the amount is significantly less than the $1.9 billion originally sought by the SEC.

Observers view this as a relatively favorable outcome for Ripple, especially given the judge’s ruling last year that XRP is not a security when sold on secondary markets. During writing, XRP price jumped 23.62% to $0.6214, with its one-day trading volume skyrocketing 319% to $5.85 billion over the last 24 hours. This spike in price and volume also indicates the growing market optimism.

Also Read: XRP ETF Odds Surge As Ripple SEC Lawsuit Ends With Final Ruling