In a series of tweets on social media platform X, U.S. attorney Fred Rispoli pointed out the silence around the ongoing lawsuit between the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Ripple Labs.
As noted in the tweet, the SEC has until February 12 to complete the damages-related discovery. So far, Rispoli stated that the SEC has not filed any discovery motions. However, the attorney said a motion may be filed this week or before the February 12 deadline.
Should a motion not come before then, Rispoli opined it might indicate Ripple and the SEC are looking to settle the lawsuit amicably. Nonetheless, the attorney suggested two outcomes to the current lawsuit between the two parties.
The first route, the attorney explained will see the SEC get “the discovery it wants, reviews it, and the parties finally settle.” If that fails, then Rispoli said the second outcome becomes inevitable, which will see the discovery dragged out through the damages briefings, which conclude on April 29.
According to the attorney, the second route may see the SEC lose most of what it wants from the lawsuit. Therefore, Rispoli said it is possible the regulator may opt to settle amicably with the blockchain firm, considering its mounting losses in Court. Nonetheless, the SEC will see the case end in a partial victory, given the court’s ruling that institutional sales of XRP qualify as securities.
The SEC v Ripple lawsuit, which started three years ago, is expected to close this early summer. During that period, the SEC claimed XRP sales by Ripple violated securities law. However, a July 2023 ruling by Judge Analisa Torres held otherwise and ruled that only institutional sales of XRP qualified as securities.
Renowned XRP attorney John Deaton said the damages Ripple will have to pay at the end of the lawsuit may not be substantial. The attorney based this on certain criteria for assessing damages, including where the sales occurred and whether any financial loss was suffered.
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