Gray Reed Files Amicus Brief in SEC Digital Asset Gag Order Case Before 9th Circuit Court of Appeals
Gray Reed has filed an amicus brief on behalf of the Texas Blockchain Council and the AI Innovation Association in the ongoing Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) gag order case before the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, joining 10 other research organizations, advocacy groups and law firms in supporting the New Civil Liberties Alliance's Powell, et al. v. SEC lawsuit, which challenges the SEC's refusal to amend its "gag rule."
"We're proud to represent the Texas Blockchain Council and the AI Innovation Association in this important case," said Chris Davis, Partner at Gray Reed and Co-Chair of the firm’s Blockchain and Digital Assets practice group. "The SEC's approach to regulating digital assets through enforcement actions, coupled with mandatory gag orders, sets a dangerous precedent that could impact emerging technologies beyond blockchain, including artificial intelligence."
A key excerpt from the amicus brief states: "The SEC's history of regulating digital assets is informative. Its regulation in this space has taken place almost completely through enforcement, and risks establishing a dangerous precedent that threatens potentially complementary and overlapping technologies like AI. In fact, the SEC maintains a web page listing its extensive list of digital asset enforcement actions. From this page, one can easily click a link and read about the SEC's version of the enforcement action—and only the SEC's version. The Defendant's version of events is nowhere to be found—because the SEC has silenced the Defendant."
The amicus brief was drafted by Davis and Angela Laughlin Brown. To view a copy, click here.
The case is Thomas Joseph Powell, et al. v. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Case No. 24-1899 in the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.
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