The US court rejected the SEC's motion to settle with Ripple on the grounds of procedural errors

U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres denied the SEC's motion for a settlement filed jointly with Ripple. The motion seeks the court to lift the injunction in the August 2024 judgment and approve the release of $50 million of the $125 million civil penalty escrow to be paid to the SEC and the remaining funds to be returned to Ripple. The judge found that the application did not follow the procedural requirements set out in Rule 60 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. Ripple's chief legal officer said it will resubmit the settlement application in compliance with the rules.
Legal experts analyzed that both parties need to explain the reasons for the settlement in detail according to the Rule 60 standard, including the basis for the SEC's decision to drop other charges, etc. It is expected that the complete process will take 3-5 weeks. The judge stressed that this rejection is only for procedural defects and does not involve a substantive review of the settlement content.