The lawyers representing SBF, the former CEO of the cryptocurrency exchange FTX, have been offered a minimal time frame to ask for the trial postponement. As per the series of tweets on X, the deadline for requesting a jury on SBF’s trial start date was originally Sep 7 this year. However, the lawyers representing the former CEO chose an extended date in which SBF would have managed to clear out his name. Furthermore, the legal team hinted at needing more time as a result of alleged problems with access to discovery materials.
Judge Kaplan: On advice of counsel, I'd like a joint proposal by the close of business Friday. I'll resolve that over the weekend. I'm grateful for the zealous advocacy. Anything else?
SBF's lawyer: Not from the defense.
AUSA: We don't think adjournment needed— Inner City Press (@innercitypress) August 30, 2023
Judge Kaplan stated that if the defendant feels that he needs a postponement, he can ask for it. However, he did mention that he would not necessarily grant it. SBF’s legal team would be required to justify a need instead of recounting the total number of documents.
At the same time, the hearing on August 30 also underscored the defense’s request for SBF’s temporary release. The lawyers believed that it would enable them to make ideal preparations for the upcoming trial on Oct 3. Furthermore, Bankman-Fried was later confined at the Metropolitan Detention Centre in Brooklyn.
The Legal Future of SBF
The legal team of the disgraced entrepreneur also argues that the limited internet services offered to SBF hinder adequate trial preparations. Currently, it is widely believed that the prosecutors have collected major evidence that Bankman-Fried has not been able to review. SBF has the facility of reviewing these materials for up to 70 hours a week, and the council can also visit him throughout the week.
Judge Kaplan made it evident that he would accept motions from the legal team of the former CEO and the prosecutors and rule them out by the following week. It is believed that these filings of Bankman-Fried’s defense strategy of arguing that he acted in good faith on the advice of the previous council.
SBF is currently drowning in a series of major criminal charges, which would span two different trials. One of them is set to begin in October this year, whereas the second one will take place in March 2024. Currently, the former CEO has pleaded not guilty to all 12 criminal charges.
