Attorney Ian R. Cohen has intensified his legal battle against a controversial lawsuit seeking control of roughly 3.8 million Bitcoin, valued at approximately $238 billion, including wallets linked to Bitcoin creator Satoshi Nakamoto. In a June 19 filing, Cohen pushed back against plaintiffs’ attempts to overturn a court-ordered stay, arguing that dormant self-custodied Bitcoin does not qualify as abandoned property under New York law.
The case, brought by anonymous plaintiffs Noah Doe, ABC Company, and XYZ Company, contends that 39,069 long-inactive Bitcoin addresses should be treated as abandoned assets and transferred via court order due to an alleged technical flaw preventing owners from accessing funds. Earlier in June, New York Justice Kathy King granted a stay after Cohen petitioned to participate as amicus counsel. A hearing on his application is scheduled for July 14.
Cohen’s latest filing challenges both the legal and factual grounds of the lawsuit. He argues the stay was issued by the court itself, not merely at his request, and that lifting it could allow a default judgment against pseudonymous addresses, impacting property rights for billions of dollars in Bitcoin without meaningful defense. He also cited on-chain evidence that some targeted wallets have recently moved funds—Galaxy Digital research head Alex Thorn confirmed 52 named addresses moved 34,335 BTC, with 29 of those moving 12,302 BTC after receiving lawsuit notice—undermining claims of abandonment.
The lawsuit has drawn widespread criticism. Ripple CTO Emeritus David Schwartz questioned how a New York court could assert authority over decentralized wallet owners, warning the legal theory could endanger crypto self-custody. Binance founder Changpeng Zhao separately suggested dormant wallets might need to be frozen during a quantum-resistant migration if owners don’t move funds, but stressed community consensus would be required.
