Do Kwon, ex-CEO of Terra, is searching for to delay the SEC trial in opposition to him and his former firm so he can attend the trial.
Kwon’s authorized workforce has formally requested a US courtroom to defer the trial, citing uncertainties about his extradition course of from Montenegro.
Authorized paperwork submitted on Jan. 11 reveal that Kwon’s extradition is encountering delays, along with his protection workforce estimating his arrival within the US won’t happen till February or March. This has led to the request for a delay within the trial, which was initially set to start on the finish of January.
In a state of affairs the place the courtroom refuses to delay the trial, Kwon’s legal professionals have steered that the jury must be suggested to not view his absence and incapacity to testify as unfairly detrimental to his case.
Kwon’s extradition has been a topic of authorized competition, along with his workforce successfully challenging a Montenegro excessive courtroom’s choice to extradite him to the US or South Korea. The Appeals Courtroom known as for a retrial as a result of procedural discrepancies.
The submitting additionally notes that the ultimate choice on extradition rests not with the courtroom, which solely assesses the authorized foundation for extradition, however reasonably with the Montenegrin Minister of Justice.
The case has garnered consideration throughout the cryptocurrency group, with some speculating about potential corruption in Montenegro’s authorized system influencing Kwon’s extradition proceedings.
Kwon faces allegations of fraud linked to the downfall of TerraUSD (UST) and LUNA, now often known as LUNC tokens. The occasion led to the collapse of the Terra crypto venture in Might 2022, inflicting a staggering $60 billion loss on the crypto group.
In late November, Podgorica’s highest courtroom accredited Kwon’s extradition following requests from South Korean and American authorities. The choice relating to his closing vacation spot – the US or South Korea – was to be made by Montenegro’s Minister of Justice.
Montenegro had initially deliberate to extradite Kwon to the US. In the course of December, it grew to become recognized that the Excessive Courtroom of Montenegro extended Kwon’s detention.
In the meantime, within the US, each Kwon and the SEC have sought summary judgments of their authorized dispute, every occasion calling for a federal choose to rule of their favor with no full trial. They argue that the opposite facet has failed to offer substantial proof for his or her claims.
The SEC has additionally referenced the Terraform case in its ongoing legal actions in opposition to Binance and Coinbase, using it to bolster their place.