Australian Judge Allows Plaintiff to Use Bitcoin as Collateral Bond

In Australia, a New South Wales (NSW) court has allowed a cryptocurrency exchange account to be used as a collateral bond for legal costs.

The NSW District Court, hearing a defamation claim, was asked to force a plaintiff to put $20,000 into a court-controlled bank account. The amount would cover some of the defendant's expected legal costs, should the plaintiff lose or withdraw the case.

According to the Australian press, the plaintiff was granted permission to offer their cryptocurrency holdings in lieu of fiat currency.

Volatility Issues

The defending legal team countered that despite the plaintiffs crypto holdings meeting the AUD $20,000 value, due to the volatility of cryptocurrency the bond offered may not be suitable.

The presiding Judge Judith Gibson said she was prepared to accept cryptocurrency was volatile but, she said, “ However, this is a recognised form of investment.”

Judge Gibson addressed the volatility issue, the plaintiff agreed to provide the defendant's legal counsel monthly statements for the investment account and is obligated to alert them if the account’s holding do drop below AUD $20,000 in value.

The plaintiff will also have to alert the solicitor when the account drops below $20,000, should that occur. “These are uncertain financial times.” Judge Gibson concluded.

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