The trial lasted more than four years.
A United States federal court has dismissed a class-action lawsuit accusing Uniswap Labs of facilitating fraudulent token trading on its decentralized protocol. The court dismissed the plaintiffs’ claim with prejudice after four years of litigation.
According to the filing by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, Judge Catherine Polk Failla dismissed the case on several grounds, including the plaintiffs’ failure to notify the defendants of the fraud. Among other reasons, the judge also ruled that the plaintiffs failed to allege that Uniswap Labs and its founder Hayden Adams aided, abetted and substantially aided the fraud.
Uniswap wins Scam Token class action lawsuit
In filing the original complaint and first amended complaint (FAC) in April and September 2022, the plaintiffs asserted 14 claims against Uniswap, Adams and other defendants. The plaintiffs alleged that the defendants were liable for fraudulent tokens issued and traded on Uniswap.
The controversy stems from the fact that the identity of the fraudulent token issuers was unknown. They claimed that Uniswap served as a token market in exchange for transaction fees. The plaintiffs also insist that the defendants actually sold the tokens as unregistered broker-dealers by creating smart contracts that allow original ownership of the UNI protocol.
As of August 2023, the court dismissed FAC for failure to state a claim under the federal securities laws. Judge Faillah insisted that the prosecution’s efforts to hold the defendants liable for fraud losses were unconvincing. Although the appellants appealed the dismissal, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals partially affirmed the judge’s decision in February 2025. As a result, plaintiffs were again granted leave to amend their complaint.
No claims are accepted
In a second amended complaint (SAC) filed in May 2025, the plaintiffs focused on violations of state law. So far, the judge has dismissed all defendants except Uniswap and Adams. By July, the defendants filed a motion to dismiss under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.
In dismissing SAC, Judge Failla insisted that the plaintiffs had failed to make out valid claims against Uniswap despite three attempts.
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“Even if the plaintiffs had sufficiently alleged actual knowledge of the defendants, their claim would be moot because they have not alleged that the defendants significantly aided and abetted the issuers’ fraud,” the judge stated.
Meanwhile, Adams commented on the sacking, calling it a “good and sensible result”.
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