Stuart Alderoty, Chief Legal Officer (CLO) of Ripple Labs, has provided his expected timeline for the appeals process in the case against the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). His prediction provides insight into the procedural steps that both parties will take and indicates that the briefing process could drag on until July 2025.
Ripple Vs. SEC: Potential Appellate Timeline
FOX Business journalist Eleanor Terrett shared details of her conversation with Alderoty on October 15 via X. She reported: “Just had a great chat with Stuart Alderoty of Ripple who gave me a rundown of the appeals timeline. The SEC’s last day to file Form C (which will give some level of detail about what it plans to appeal) is tomorrow.” This implies that by today, October 16, the SEC must submit Form C, a document that will outline the specific aspects of the case it intends to challenge on appeal.
Terrett continued, relaying Alderoty’s insights: “Seven days later, Ripple will file its own Form C, which will give more details about its own cross-appeal. Both parties will then agree on a briefing schedule, and the SEC then has up to 90 days to file its first brief. Alderoty says he expects them to take the full 90 days. That opening brief will be a full recitation of all the legal arguments that the SEC will be making. Ripple will file a response and then its own brief.” According to Alderoty, “the full briefing process… will go through July 2025.”
The SEC’s decision to appeal follows the final ruling on August 7, 2024. Judge Analisa Torres of the US District Court for the Southern District of New York granted a permanent injunction against Ripple Labs and its executives, while imposing a $125 million penalty for unregistered XRP sales. Already on July 13, 2023, Torres ruled that Ripple’s institutional sales of XRP violated federal securities laws, deeming them unregistered securities offerings. However, it also concluded that Ripple’s programmatic sales of XRP to the general public, as well as distributions to employees and third parties, did not constitute securities transactions.
On October 2, the SEC formally announced its intent to appeal the ruling by filing a “notice of appeal” to the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. Notably, the SEC has not yet articulated the specific grounds of its appeal. The forthcoming Form C is expected to provide more detailed information about the legal arguments the SEC plans to advance.
In response to the SEC’s appeal, Ripple announced on October 10 that it would file a cross-appeal. Stuart Alderoty stated via X: “The SEC lost on all key points—that’s why they appealed. Today, Ripple filed a cross-appeal to ensure nothing’s left on the table, including the argument that there can’t be an ‘investment contract’ without there being essential rights and obligations found in a contract.”
As Bitcoinist reported, pro-XRP lawyer Fred Rispoli also offered a prediction regarding the appellate timeline two weeks, which aligns with Alderoty’s expectations but extends the potential conclusion of the case into early 2026. Rispoli outlined the sequence of filings and responses leading up to oral arguments, scheduled for sometime between September and October 2025, with he expects a final ruling from the Second Circuit Court of Appeals not until at least January 2026.
At press time, XRP traded at $0.5430.
Featured image from YouTube / EUI TV, chart from TradingView.com