Justice prevails – Craig Wright v Peter McCormack

On 20 May 2024, Mr Justice Mellor handed down a groundbreaking judgment in the matter of COPA v Wright, that Dr Craig Wright was not the world-renowned Satoshi Nakamoto (he will be referred in this article as he is most commonly known as to be Satoshi)(the proceedings will be referred to as the “Wright Litigation”) Satoshi is proclaimed to have invented Bitcoin. Satoshi is the author of the Bitcoin White Paper, and Wright sought to prove throughout lengthy proceedings that Satoshi is his pseudonym. 

By way of a brief background, the Wright Litigation was commenced by several parties, most predominantly the Crypto Open Patient Alliance (“COPA”) claimants. Dr Wright issued counter-proceedings, known as the BTC Core claim to prove his identity as Satoshi. The Court effectively consolidated the claims to determine whether Dr Wright was in fact Satoshi.

Dr Wright did not succeed in either litigation, and Mr Justice Mellor held that Dr Wright is not Satoshi, the creator of Bitcoin and he did not author the Bitcoin White Paper or the original software. The full judgment can be found here.

So what does this mean? Well, because of the evidence Dr Wright produced and sought to rely on in the Wright Litigation, the Court found that Dr Wright had acted fraudulently in identifying himself as Satoshi. A finding of fraud and dishonesty meant that previous Court proceedings which had concluded, had grounds to be challenged.

In this case, Dr Wright had commenced defamation proceedings on 17 April 2019 against Peter McCormack for a series of 14 tweets published in 2019 and a subsequent YouTube video (the “Publications”). These proceedings were lengthy, and several interlocutory applications were made, of which Wright was awarded costs on two occasions. 

In the earlier proceedings, Dr Wright argued that the publications were defamatory. Mr McCormack pleaded defences of truth, public interest and abuse of process (later abandoned due to lack of legal representation). Mr McCormack’s main defence to trial, was that the Publications did not cause a serious harm to Wright’s reputation.

In August 2022, Chamberlain J concluded in Dr Wright’s favor and found that the Publications were defamatory, and in turn awarded nominal damages. Chamberlain J did not determine the issue of Dr Wright’s identity, the case was determined on the basis of the evidence and facts at the time.

Following Mr Justice Mellor’s decision in the Wright Litigation, Mr McCormack issued an application to Court for a Worldwide Freezing Order (“WFO”). On 2 July 2024, this application came before Mr Justice Mellor. Mr McCormack’s position was that due to Mr Justice Mellor’s finding in the Wright Litigation, costs awarded in these proceedings should be reversed, because the entire claim was advanced upon fraud that Dr Wright was Satoshi.

Both parties made lengthy submissions, about the costs awarded and whether the Court should exercise its discretion pursuant to CPR 44.11 to reverse the costs orders. Submissions were also made to the effect that it would be just and convenient for an WFO to be granted, and there was a real risk of dissipation of assets. Mr Justice Mellor, granted the WFO in favour of Mr McCormack, and found that there was a real risk of the costs orders Mr McCormack had secured not being satisfied.

Please contact our litigation department, if you have concerns or questions regarding enforcement of cost orders and/or litigation advice. Our specialist litigation team advises in relation to cross border issues, enforcement proceedings and also adopts creative methods to ensure we achieve the best outcome for your case.

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This article is for general information only. Its content is not a statement of the law on any subject and does not constitute advice.

Please contact KaurMaxwell for advice before taking any action in reliance on it. 

By: Dhruti Shingadia