Ripple Legal Battle Hits Snag: Judge Tosses Settlement Plan Over Procedural Mess

New York Judge Analisa Torres just threw a wrench in Ripple's plans. On September 15, 2025, she rejected their settlement modification with the SEC. Why? Procedural flaws. Big ones.

The whole thing's a bit embarrassing, honestly. Both sides wanted to slash the penalty from $125 million down to $50 million. They also wanted to lift Ripple's sales restrictions. But they kinda forgot something important.

The Paperwork Problem

The court wasn't happy. Not at all.

They didn't cite Rule 60. Basic stuff. Seems like an amateur mistake for high-powered lawyers.

Plus, the case had already moved to appeals. Torres pointed out the court didn't even have jurisdiction anymore unless something "extraordinary" was happening. Neither side bothered explaining why their situation qualified. Oops.

It's kind of surprising how often these big cases get derailed by simple procedural missteps. Everybody's in such a rush.

Who's Really Causing Delays?

Legal analyst Bill Morgan has thoughts. He's questioning Ripple's story about who's dragging their feet here.

The SEC? They've actually been pretty flexible. They dropped their appeal. They agreed to remove sales restrictions.

Ripple might be playing politics. The current administration seems crypto-friendly. Perfect timing to push for lower fines, right? They probably want to overturn that 2023 ruling about institutional sales being securities violations too.

XRP Market Doesn't Seem Too Worried

The price is doing okay despite the legal drama. Up 8% to $2.30 lately.

Whales are buying. Like, a lot. Around 120 million tokens in just the past week.

XRPL's Total Value Locked sits at $40 million. Not impressive compared to other layer-1 blockchains. Not even 1%.

The court still says institutional sales are securities transactions. This creates... complications.

What happens next isn't entirely clear. But however this procedural tangle gets resolved, it'll shape crypto regulation for years to come.