Craig Wright sent enemies to legal ‘hell,’ says judge in restraining order

Craig Wright, a computer scientist, has been issued a restraining order by the British High Court, preventing him from filing further defamation lawsuits. This follows a May 12th judgment by High Court Judge Edward Mellor, who detailed Wright’s pattern of aggressive legal actions and false claims against individuals and developers within the Bitcoin community.

Judge Mellor characterized Wright’s actions as creating a “legal hell” for his targets, describing a deliberate strategy of “weaponizing legal systems” to intimidate and silence critics. The judge highlighted the substantial financial backing behind Wright’s campaign, emphasizing the inherently unequal nature of these legal battles. The cost and time involved in defending against these lawsuits, often based on fabricated evidence, placed an immense burden on the defendants.

The case was brought by the Crypto Open Patent Alliance (COPA), a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting crypto technology and removing patent barriers to innovation. COPA sought injunctive relief in 2021 due to threats made by Wright against its members, including prominent figures like crypto blogger Peter McCormack and Magnus Granath (Hodlonaut). The court’s judgment underscores the significant chilling effect Wright’s actions had on innovation within the cryptocurrency industry.

Judge Mellor’s ruling explicitly states that Wright’s actions caused “significant disruption to innovation in an important technology industry,” extending far beyond the individuals directly targeted. The five-year ordeal inflicted upon McCormack and Granath was cited as a prime example of the personal toll exacted by Wright’s legal strategy.

This ruling builds upon previous legal setbacks for Wright. Last March, the High Court determined that he was not Satoshi Nakamoto, the pseudonymous creator of Bitcoin. Despite a subsequent disclaimer on his website denying his connection to Bitcoin, Wright received a one-year suspended sentence for contempt of court in December. His history of legal action also includes libel suits against Vitalik Buterin and Adam Back, highlighting a protracted and aggressive campaign to assert his false claims. The restraining order serves as a significant legal victory against Wright’s misuse of the legal system.