United States Magistrate Judge Sarah Netburn has denied the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) access to Ripple Labs legal communication.

In a recent memo from the United States District Court, the memo indicates that Judge Netburn has denied the SEC access to Ripple Labs communication memos. 

The document states that the SEC had been seeking an order to access “all communications constituting, transmitting, or discussing any legal advice Ripple sought or received as to whether its offers and sales of XRP were or would be subject to federal securities laws”. 

The memo ends saying “the motion is denied.”

The judgement comes less than a month after the SEC had put forward the motion against Ripple. Ripple Labs had also previously added former United States Treasurer Rosie Rios to its board of directors, while also adding fintech executive Kristina Campbell to the team as chief financial officer. 

Issues raised against the judgement 

In the memo Judge Netburn added several points to the reason for denying the SEC. These included attorney-client privilege. Netburn reiterated that attorney-client privilege should be “strictly confined within the narrowest possible limits consistent with the logic of its principle.”

Another issue raised against the SECs request is attorney client privilege. The memo reiterates that “the parties do not dispute that the information the SEC seeks falls under the privilege.”  

Furthermore, Ripple Labs claims that its “fair notice” defense was that there was a “lack of clarity and fair notice regarding Defendants’ obligations under the law.”

Ripple Labs also stated that the eight year delay in pursuing enforcement action against the company following over 200 exchange listings and billions of dollars in XRP sales transactions, as another concern. 

Lastly, Ripple Labs also explained that a certain exchange had seeked advice previously regarding XRP being considered a security before listing. 

The SEC did not state that it considered XRP to be a security and said the exchange listed the cryptocurrency.

Ripple scores another win against the SEC 

The memo continues with several more points backing Ripple Labs. The conclusion states that “the SEC’s motion is DENIED.” 

The latest blow to the SEC is another win for Ripple Labs who have been battling against the SEC for months.