Ripple Labs has voiced its opposition to the US Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) interlocutory appeal of the summary judgment rendered by US District Judge Analisa Torres on July 13.
In an August 16 letter addressed to Torres in the Southern District of New York, Ripple's legal team argued that due to the SEC's failure to satisfy certain elements of the Howey test related to Ripple's distribution, the request for an interlocutory appeal should be denied as a "question of law."
Interlocutory appeals occur when an appeal is filed against a trial court's decision while other aspects of the case are still pending. Ripple's lawyers contend that it would be more appropriate for the SEC to appeal the court's decision after a fully documented final judgment is reached.
Ripple's legal team presented three primary arguments against the SEC's appeal request. Firstly, they maintained that the appeal deals with purely legal matters and doesn't introduce new legal questions warranting review. ed that the SEC's assertion that the court made an Erroneous ruling isn't enough, as the SEC must demonstrate a clear conflict between the two courts on the matter, which isn't the case here.
Lastly, Ripple's legal representatives contended that an immediate appeal wouldn't expedite the conclusion of the proceedings. Ripple's Chief Legal Officer, Stuart Alderoty, emphasized that there aren't any "exceptional circumstances" in the case that would justify deviate from the standard legal process. The partial victory secured by Ripple on July 13 pertained to XRP's security status, with Judge Torres ruling that the XRP token itself isn't a security. However, she noted that under specific circumstances, XRP token sales might be considered securities, such as when sold to institutional investors, but not when traded on exchanges to retail traders.
