Blockvest II: Court Reverses Itself And Grants The SEC A Preliminary Injunction In The Face Of Manifest Fraud

As we previously discussed, the SEC suffered a rare defeat in Securities and Exchange Commission v. Blockvest, LLC et al. on November 27, when Judge Curiel of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California issued a denial (the "November Order") of its motion for a preliminary injunction against Defendants' future violations of Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 ("Section 17(a)"), despite manifest evidence of fraudulent representations in the Defendants' website postings. The November Order attracted intense scrutiny and on December 17, the SEC moved for partial reconsideration of the November Order. Last week, on February 14, the court granted, in part, the SEC's motion for reconsideration (the "February Order" and, together with the November Order, the "Orders"), relying on purported new evidence and an argument that the court apparently had overlooked. It is fair to ask whether the new evidence motivated the reversal.

As Judge Curiel recited, under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, a motion for reconsideration is appropriate, among other reasons, if the district court is "presented with newly discovered evidence." Judge Curiel stated that the standard for granting a preliminary injunction requires the SEC to show: "(1) a prima facie case of previous violations of federal securities laws, and (2) a reasonable likelihood that the wrong will be repeated." Based upon these standards, the court concluded that reconsideration in this case was warranted "based upon a prima facie showing of Defendants' past securities violation and newly developed evidence which support the conclusion that there is a reasonable likelihood of future violations." However, it is not clear what "newly developed evidence" formed the basis for this conclusion.

In applying the Howey test to the tokens offered by Blockvest, the court agreed with the SEC that "the Howey test is unquestionably an objective one." The court disputed the SEC's assertion that in the November Order the court had applied a "subjective test" by relying solely on the beliefs of some individual investors. Rather, the court stated that it had "objectively inquire[d] into the 'terms of promotional materials, information, economic inducements or oral representations at the seminars, or in other words, an inquiry into the 'character of the instrument or transaction offered' to the 'purchasers.'"

The court emphasized that in the November Order it had denied the motion for a...