decrypt.co
Craig Wright, Bitcoin SV backer and self-proclaimed inventor of Bitcoin, has had another court case dismissed.
Back in April 2019, Wright sued a pseudonymous Bitcoin (BTC) proponent, known as Hodlonaut, for defamation. He claimed the user, known only by his distinctive "cat in a spacesuit" Twitter photo, damaged his reputation by calling him a scammer.
Wright then put out a $5,000 bounty for the pseudonymous Bitcoiner's personal information, which resulted in Hodlonaut's details being publically posted online—known as doxxing. It is unknown if the bounty was paid.
According to a tweet posted by Hodlonaut, this court case has been dismissed. "UK High Court handed down judgment today in the defamation case [Wright] filed against me. The Judge ruled UK does not have jurisdiction, and the proceedings against me there to be dismissed," Hodlonaut wrote.
He added that the case will have jurisdiction in Norway and that the case might be reopened there.
UK High Court handed down judgment today in the defamation case CSW filed against me.
The Judge ruled UK does not have jurisdiction, and the proceedings against me there to be dismissed.Norway has jurisdiction.
We will go to court there to put an end to this mess.💪🌮
— hodlonaut🌮⚡🔑 (@hodlonaut) January 16, 2020
This is not the first time that Wright has sued for defamation in court, only to see it thrown out. In May 2019, he also sued Bitcoin.com founder and Bitcoin Cash proponent Roger Ver for calling him a fraud. This case was similarly thrown out for lack of jurisdiction.
Wright is also suing podcaster Peter McCormack. However, unlike the others (assuming Hodlonaut is based in Norway), McCormack actually lives in the UK.
1. CSW v Hodlonaut (CSW lost)
2. CSW v Kleiman (CSW loses, currently appealing)
3. CSW v Roger Dodger (CSW loses, currently appealing)
4. CSW v McCormick (TBD)Welcome to law.
— Peter McCormack (@PeterMcCormack) January 16, 2020
Wright asserts that he is Satoshi Nakamoto, the inventor of Bitcoin. Many in the crypto community dispute this, asking for proof in the form of the private keys necessary to move bitcoin that Satoshi mined in Bitcoin's early days. As a result, Wright launched the aforementioned lawsuits to protect his claim to be Satoshi against those who dispute it.
Adding a twist to the tale, this claim has opened Wright himself up to a lawsuit. Since he says he is Satoshi, he is being sued by the estate of Dave Kleiman for half of the bitcoin he mined in the early days. The claim is that both Kleiman and Wright mined the coins together and, therefore, should split the profits—which would now go to Kleiman's estate, since he passed away in 2013. On Tuesday, Wright revealed a list of 16,404 addresses that he claims to own—but says he doesn't yet know how to access them.