US court allows SEC counsel withdrawal in Adani case

A US federal court has permitted the SEC to withdraw attorney Antonia Marie Apps from its civil enforcement case against the Adani Group. This development follows a joint status report filed by both parties, detailing procedural updates. The court had previously stayed all briefing ahead of an anticipated motion to dismiss, with a pre-motion conference scheduled for May 29, 2026.

ETLegalWorld

Published On May 2, 2026 at 11:11 AM IST

A US federal court has allowed the Securities and Exchange Commission to withdraw attorney Antonia Marie Apps from its civil enforcement case involving the Adani Group.

In an order dated May 1, 2026, James R. Cho granted the SEC's motion to withdraw Apps as counsel of record in the case against Gautam Adani and other defendants. The order formally terminates Apps’ appearance in the matter.

The development comes a day after a joint status report was filed on April 30, 2026, in the SEC’s civil case against Gautam and Sagar Adani, outlining recent procedural developments as a federal court in New York stayed all briefing ahead of an anticipated motion to dismiss.

Advt Read More: Status report filed in SEC case against Adani; next hearing May 29

The status report was submitted pursuant to a February 14, 2026, minute order issued by Judge Cho, which had directed the parties to provide an update on the progress of the case. In the filing, counsel for the defendants said they were writing jointly with the Securities and Exchange Commission in response to the court’s directive.

According to the status report, the defendants had earlier, on April 7, 2026, submitted a pre-motion conference letter setting out the grounds on which they intend to seek dismissal of the SEC’s complaint. This was followed by a joint request from the parties on April 17 seeking an extension of the stipulated briefing schedule.

As previously reported, in an order dated April 20, 2026, Nicholas G. Garaufis stayed all briefing in the case and scheduled a pre-motion conference for May 29, 2026. The court also directed the SEC to be prepared to clarify at the conference whether it plans to amend its complaint, while extending the deadline for the defendants to answer or otherwise move against the complaint until that date.