In recent times, Reed O’Connor, a federal judge in the US District Court for the Northern District of Texas, agreed to speed up the review that Consensys lawyers had asked for. The review will find out if the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) can control MetaMask as a broker-dealer for the self-custodial wallet.
A lawyer for the Ethereum development studio Consensys named Bill Hughes said on social media that the court will look at these questions along with any points the Securities and Exchange Commission makes about their ability to bring a case against Consensys.
Consensys Challenges SEC Authority
The court is likely to make a decision around Christmas. By September 20, opening papers on dispositive motions must be sent in.
By declaring the second-largest cryptocurrency a security, the Securities and Exchange Commission tried to expand its authority over digital assets. In April, Ethereum co-founder Joe Lubin led Consensys in court against the SEC.
This lawsuit came after the SEC said they might go after MetaMask’s creator for allegedly breaking securities laws. This made Consensys want to get injunctive and declaratory relief.
The SEC stopped looking into Ethereum 2.0 last month because they did not believe that selling Ethereum was the same as buying stocks. Eventually, though, the SEC sued Consensys, saying that the company hadn’t registered as a trader.
