Judge Tosses Claims Against Solana Labs, Solana Foundation in Pump Fun Case

U.S. District Judge Colleen McMahon has dismissed claims brought by Burwick Law against Solana Labs and the Solana Foundation in the ongoing Pump Fun lawsuit, while also ruling on a series of motions seeking to throw out other allegations. The court allowed racketeering (RICO) claims to proceed against Pump Fun's parent, Baton Corporation, and executives Noah Bernhard Hugo Tweedale, Alon Cohen, and Dylan Kerler. Those allegations—submitted by plaintiffs Carnahan and Okafor—accuse the defendants of wire fraud, illegal gambling, and unlicensed money transmission. Racketeering claims brought by plaintiff Aguilar were dismissed. McMahon also rejected allegations that Pump Fun defendants offered unregistered securities in violation of the Securities Act. The decision found the FRED and GRIFFAIN memecoins did not involve a "common enterprise" under the Howey Test. Ariel Givner, founder of a crypto law firm, said the ruling should not be read as a blanket determination that memecoins are not securities. She said the reasoning applies where a token does not present a shared objective of rising profits for all participants. The court further dismissed unjust enrichment claims. McMahon ordered Burwick Law to explain why it has not served 25 unnamed key opinion leaders (KOLs) since the suit was filed in January 2025. The complaint accuses the KOLs of promoting Pump Fun tokens and, in some cases, hiding compensation and existing token holdings. Burwick Law has until September 10 to show why those claims should not be dismissed for failure to identify and serve the defendants. Earlier filings identified crypto influencer Scooter as a defendant; Scooter has threatened to sue Burwick Law over potential defamation. Burwick Law added Solana Labs and the Solana Foundation to the case more than a year ago, alleging the two coordinated to sidestep U.S. securities laws and draw capital from the U.S. market. The firm also argued Solana's crypto infrastructure lacked investor protections, disclosure requirements, and legal accountability tied to the memecoin market and its losses. Jito Labs was also named alongside Solana Labs but was later voluntarily dropped from the lawsuit by Burwick Law.