Eric Tun, a corporate lawyer with a track record of representing crypto companies, is poised to participate in one of the most influential federal courts in the United States.
On Tuesday, US President Donald Trump sent Ton’s appointment to the Senate to become the US Circuit Judge for the 9th Circuit covering Arizona, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, Nevada, California-Alaska and Hawaii.
Since 2019, Tung, a partner at law firm Jones Day, has had clients including digital currency companies.
Court records show that Tung is representing the advocacy group Blockchain Association in a lawsuit filed by six tornado cash users on Jones Day. He also represented investors in lawsuits against HDR Global Trading Limited, the parent company of BitMex Exchange.
If he is confirmed as a federal judge, he could cover appeals when involved in Silicon Valley-based companies filing in jurisdictions, including many cryptocurrency companies.
Watchdog flags are deregulation pushes
Tung’s appointment has attracted criticism, and along with the accountant of the WatchDog organization, a potential judge has said he can support deregulation of digital assets as part of Trump’s administrative crypto agenda.
The president has already changed his leadership fundamentally at financial institutions overseeing digital assets, such as the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, and is heading the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, considering his choice in the Senate.
“Tung has built a career representing Crypto companies trying to avoid government restrictions,” Watchdog said in a notification Thursday.
“He served as an attorney for the Stablecoin provider in a brief argument that standalone sales of Stablecoins are not securities. He represented the Blockchain Association in a short opposition regulation of immutable smart contracts.
Cointelegraph contacted Tung for comment but did not receive a response at the time of publication.
Related: Court will terminate Coincenter Treasury appeals over tornado cash
Important cryptography passed through the 9th Circuit
A federal judge overseeing the appeal could have a significant impact on how future civil and criminal cases will be handled. Many technology companies, including those involved in crypto and blockchain, submit to the 9th Circuit when necessary.
In 2024, a panel of three judges in the circuit partially reversed a class action lawsuit claiming Binance.us was 16 ahead. Nvidia, a California-based semiconductor company, passed the 9th Circuit in a 2018 incident filed by some shareholders in charge of private sales to Crypto Miners.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sumyysrjvzm
As of Tuesday, Tung’s appointment had been received by the Senate and referred to the Judicial Committee. It is unclear when the Chamber of Commerce will vote against potential federal judges, as both the House and Senate focus on passing three bills related to digital assets.
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