Ripple's case is over, but the fair notice defense is still valid for others, according to Stuart Alderoty, Ripple's chief legal officer. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) had cited the 2017 DAO report in an attempt to prove that it gave the industry advance notice that crypto-asset securities were subject to U.S. securities laws. Seven years later, the SEC apologized to a federal judge (surely one of at least ordinary intelligence) for the confusion caused by its use of terminology that was inherently unclear.