The United States Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) case against Ripple faces new uncertainty, with the community questioning the deadline for the federal agency to file Form C for its appeal.
Form C is typically filed in federal appellate courts to notify the court and involved parties of a petition for review of an administrative agency’s decision. It marks the first formal step in the appellate process and indicates the intent to submit the actual petition within the required timeline.
Over the past day, members of the XRP community speculated that the SEC missed its Form C filing deadline, believed initially to be Oct. 16, 2024. Others, however, argued the correct deadline could be Friday, Oct. 18.
The deadline uncertainty
The SEC had initially filed its notice of appeal on Oct. 2, 2024, but the case wasn’t officially entered into the system until Oct. 4.
Pro-crypto lawyer Jeremy Hogan pointed out that these different dates left room for doubt about whether the SEC ought to submit its Form C on Oct. 16 or if the agency could extend it to Oct. 18.
Meanwhile, Ripple’s CTO, David Schwartz, is as confused as everyone else. He notes that it’s not impossible that the SEC intentionally missed the deadline to end its appeal, although he finds it an unusual tactic.
He said:
“It’s not impossible that they deliberately blew a filing deadline to end their appeal, but that does seem like a really bizarre move.”
According to court filings, the SEC has 14 days after the Oct. 4 court notice to complete and submit the form. Fox Business journalist Eleanor Terrett, citing the document filed in the Second Circuit, stated, “The real deadline is actually Friday, Oct. 18 at 11:59 P.M.”
Effect of a missed deadline
While community members are still uncertain about the SEC’s deadline, a missed deadline could harm the SEC’s case against Ripple.
Pro-XRP lawyer Fred Rispoli noted that the case could be dismissed if the SEC missed the Form C deadline.
However, he pointed out that the local rules in the circuit allow courts discretion to hear cases even if deadlines are missed, especially when federal agencies are involved.
Rispoli explained:
“Appellate courts give A LOT of leeway to federal agencies. Even a lame excuse from the government is likely enough to allow the Court to let it slide. [But] if you or I were a day late on filing this freaking form, our case is over.”
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