Court Dismisses Class Action Lawsuit Against Jenner
A federal court in California has dismissed a class action lawsuit against Caitlyn Jenner and her business associate, Sophia Hutchins, ruling that the British investor who launched the suit cannot seek redress through U.S. courts for his financial losses. U.S. District Judge Stanley Blumenfeld, Jr. noted that the lawsuit failed to provide sufficient details on how Jenner facilitated the liquidity for the investments in question.
The court found no basis to conclude that Jenner had made binding commitments under U.S. securities regulations, given the lack of clarity on how the transactions were executed in the United States. The legal order to dismiss the case, filed last Thursday, was reviewed by Decrypt via Law360.
Details of the Lawsuit
The principal plaintiff, identified as Lee Greenfield, claims to have lost over $40,000 after he sold Jenner’s meme coin at a loss while holding it between May and July 2024. Greenfield is noted by the judge as having incurred the most significant financial setback in this case.
The lawsuit alleges nine distinct legal infractions against Jenner and Hutchins: seven directed at Jenner, including breaches of federal securities laws, violations of California state securities statutes, fraud, and contract disagreements, with the remaining two charges aimed at Hutchins relating to her control over the business activities and complicity in the alleged fraud.
Misleading Claims and Financial Gains
Greenfield further accused Jenner and Hutchins of misleading investors by initially launching a token known as $JENNER on the Solana platform, only to introduce similar tokens on Ethereum just two days later, which purportedly caused the original to depreciate in value.
“During the time between the launches, Greenfield claimed Jenner promoted another token, $BBARK, which was named after her and Hutchins’s dogs, despite assurances from Jenner that she was fully dedicated to her memorial tokens.”
Moreover, the lawsuit indicated that Jenner benefitted from her endeavors by collecting a 3% transaction fee from the Ethereum version of the meme coin. However, Judge Blumenfeld pointed out the insufficiency of information regarding Greenfield’s purchases, remarking that he only stated he had “accumulated” the tokens using cryptocurrencies from the Ethereum and Solana networks without offering further detail.
Future Steps in the Case
Though the case has been dismissed, the judge has allowed Greenfield until May 23 to submit a revised complaint that might include concrete evidence demonstrating that his transactions should be protected under U.S. law. Jenner and Hutchins are expected to respond to any amended complaints by June 6.
Attempts by Decrypt to connect with Jenner via her website’s press inquiry form were made, alongside efforts to reach Greenfield, who does not maintain a public email address. This report has been edited by Sebastian Sinclair.
