While the crypto community awaits the final decision in the case between blockchain company Ripple and the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC), the issue continues to be the scene of new developments from the parties involved.
Crypto VC firm Paradigm is also participating in the Ripple – SEC lawsuit! What does it change?
In a tweet from defense attorney James Filan on Dec. 28, he announced that the court specifically granted attorney Lewis Cohen’s request to participate in the lawsuit on behalf of cryptocurrency venture capitalist firm Paradigm.
Specifically, Cohen had petitioned to appear on Pro Hac Vice, meaning he wanted to look into the matter in a jurisdiction where he had no jurisdiction to practice.
#XRPCommunity #SECGov v. #Ripple #XRP Lewis Cohen, @NYcryptolawyerhas filed a Motion to Appear Pro Hac Vice on behalf of Paradigm Operations LP. https://t.co/7Zhi5YJHa7
— James K. Filan 🇺🇸🇮🇪 126k (beware of imposters) (@FilanLaw) December 27, 2022
“The Inevitable Method of Securities Law: Why Fungible Crypto Assets Are Not Securities” Cohen, who is the co-author of the book, stressed in his motion that there are no pending disciplinary proceedings against him in any state.
It’s worth noting that Paradigm played a role in Ripple’s past small wins in the lawsuit, which led to predictions that the blockchain firm could win the lawsuit. Indeed, Paradigm gave a friendly briefing to strengthen Ripple’s defense in the high-profile case.
Ripple and SEC updates
As the lawsuit stretches into its third year, both parties have since filed their final filings, though initial rumors indicated that the matter could be resolved on December 15.
The regulator was criticized for submitting a motion seeking to seal several documents in the case. The SEC wants to seal the documents in the categories of names and identifying information of SEC experts and XRP investor statements, personal and financial information, and internal SEC documents that reflect discussion and deliberation by SEC officials.
Some of the critics have accused the SEC of corruption for not going after actors like the now-crashed FTX crypto exchange.
Meanwhile, as pro-XRP attorney John Deaton predicted, the final decision could be made in April or May of next year; Lawyer Nicole Tatz, representing the other defendants in the case, requested a withdrawal.
Per Tatz’s statements, he pointed out that other attorneys at the law firm Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP will continue to act as registry counsel to Ripple CEO Bradley Garlinghouse.
The outcome of the lawsuit is expected to have implications for the crypto industry, especially the value of XRP. Specifically, the SEC is suing Ripple for illegally selling over $1.3 billion worth of XRP tokens as securities between 2013 and December 2020.
XRP price analysis
Currently, XRP is trading at $0.35, correcting over 3% in the last 24 hours. Overall, the token is in the consolidation phase and cannot make a decisive move in either direction.
XRP one-day price chart. Source: Finbold
Overall, XRP investors may be monitoring the token’s performance, keeping in mind that it is not immune from general market influences as well as situations.
