A UK judge has imposed a three-year General Civil Restraint Order (GCRO) on Craig Wright, the Australian computer scientist who continues to claim he is Bitcoin creator Satoshi Nakamoto. The order prevents Wright from filing any new civil lawsuits in the UK without prior permission from the High Court.
The ruling, issued by Judge James Mellor, follows successful legal motions by the Crypto Open Patent Alliance (COPA) and SquareUp, the payments company founded by Jack Dorsey.
New legal sanctions against Wright
Wright has also been referred to the UK’s Attorney General, Richard Hermer, who will consider whether Wright qualifies as a “vexatious litigant.” If so, he could face an even stricter Civil Procedure Order (CPO), which applies across all UK courts and severely limits access to the legal system.
Additionally, the court ordered Wright to pay £100,000 (approximately $132,000) to cover the legal costs incurred by COPA and SquareUp in pursuing the application.
The GCRO specifically bars Wright from filing any civil claims in county courts or the High Court in the UK for a period of three years without judicial permission. This period can be extended if requested by COPA or SquareUp and approved by a judge.
Should Wright violate the order, he could be held in contempt of court—a serious offense that may carry a prison sentence.
Persistent legal battles and mounting costs
A CPO, which would take the sanctions a step further, is only issued when a person is found to have “habitually, persistently, and without reasonable grounds” engaged in vexatious legal activity.
This ruling marks yet another major legal setback for Wright, who failed last year to convince UK courts that he was the pseudonymous inventor of Bitcoin. In today’s decision, Judge Mellor emphasized the toll Wright’s legal actions have taken on the system: “In this jurisdiction alone, [Wright’s] opponents have had to incur costs of at least £10 million.”
He added, “Dr. Wright’s actions have already consumed far too much of the court’s time and resources.” The judge sarcastically noted that Wright might now have more time to focus on his new pumpkin farm somewhere in rural Asia.
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