Jack Dorsey is creating what he’s calling the “Bitcoin Legal Defense Fund” that will, according to a recent statement, ensure the open-source nature of all bitcoin’s code.
Jack Dorsey to the Rescue!
The idea behind bitcoin is that it should help those who cannot gain access to standard financial products and services. Bitcoin doesn’t care about your history or your financial credit. All it needs is an internet connection and a wallet, and from there, it will perform its magic and keep you autonomous and independent when it comes to your monetary situation.
However, Jack Dorsey is worried that these days could come to an end thanks to Craig Wright, an Australian computer scientist who claims to be Satoshi Nakamoto, the man behind the world’s number one digital currency by market cap. He is presently suing 11 separate crypto developers. Wright filed the suit against them after he said that it was their job to prevent all hacks and compromises of his personal network.
When his system was indeed overtaken by cyberthieves several years back, he allegedly had his private keys stolen from him, resulting in him being cut off from billions of dollars in BTC he says he owned. Dorsey is using his new bitcoin legal fund to defend those that Wright is going after. The case was initially dismissed, but an appeals court is now allowing the case to move forward in 2024.
Lord Justice Birss – who oversaw the appeals situation – said bitcoin’s academic literature alone is enough to question the fully decentralized nature of blockchain. He commented:
If the decentralized governance of bitcoin really is a myth, then in my judgment, there is much to be said for the submission that bitcoin developers, while acting as developers, owe fiduciary duties to the true owners of that property.
Dorsey and some of his team have since penned a letter challenging these findings. It reads:
Litigation and continued threats are having their intended effect. Individual defendants have chosen to capitulate in the absence of legal support. Open-source developers, who are often independent, are especially susceptible to legal pressure. In response, we propose a coordinated and formalized response to help defend developers.
Bitcoin Is Designed for Open-Source Purposes
One of the big things that appears to be working in the defendants’ case is that bitcoin was potentially released under an open-source MIT license, which at the time of writing, states:
In no event shall the authors or copyright holders be liable for any claim, damages or other liability, whether in an action of contract, tort or otherwise, arising from, out of or in connection with the software or the use or other dealings in the software.
Dorsey thus argues that a win for Wright would bring about the end of all bitcoin’s initial design factors.
