{"id":73659,"date":"2026-06-06T22:11:48","date_gmt":"2026-06-06T22:11:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/ny-court-pauses-default-judgment-after-lawyer-argues-39069-bitcoin-wallets-were-not-abandoned\/"},"modified":"2026-06-06T22:11:48","modified_gmt":"2026-06-06T22:11:48","slug":"ny-court-pauses-default-judgment-after-lawyer-argues-39069-bitcoin-wallets-were-not-abandoned","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/ny-court-pauses-default-judgment-after-lawyer-argues-39069-bitcoin-wallets-were-not-abandoned\/","title":{"rendered":"NY Court Pauses Default Judgment After Lawyer Argues 39,069 Bitcoin Wallets Were Not Abandoned"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><b>(Originally posted on : Bitcoin News )<\/b><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"@container mb-[25px] rounded-sm overflow-clip py-0.5 pr-0.5 pl-2.5 bg-success-100\">\n<div class=\"flex flex-col gap-m overflow-clip rounded-[6px] !bg-success-10 p-3 @[420px]:p-m\">\n<h2 class=\"m-0 flex items-center gap-s text-[19px] !text-[#1c1c1c] md:text-[20px]\"><svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"16\" height=\"10\" viewbox=\"0 0 16 10\" fill=\"none\" class=\"shrink-0 text-success-100\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><path d=\"M1 1.5h14\" stroke=\"currentColor\" stroke-width=\"2.5\" stroke-linecap=\"round\"\/><path d=\"M1 8.5h10\" stroke=\"currentColor\" stroke-width=\"2.5\" stroke-linecap=\"round\"\/><\/svg><span>Key Takeaways<\/span><\/h2>\n<ul class=\"m-0 flex list-none flex-col gap-m pl-0\">\n<li class=\"m-0 flex items-start gap-s !text-[#434248]\"><span class=\"mt-2 size-2 shrink-0 rounded-full bg-success-100\" aria-hidden=\"true\"\/><span class=\"text-body\">On June 6, 47.26 BTC dormant since 2011 moved onchain from defendant address No. 37923 in the Noah Doe case.<\/span><\/li>\n<li class=\"m-0 flex items-start gap-s !text-[#434248]\"><span class=\"mt-2 size-2 shrink-0 rounded-full bg-success-100\" aria-hidden=\"true\"\/><span class=\"text-body\">NY attorney Ian R. Cohen filed an amicus brief on May 29, prompting a June 5 court stay in Index No. 153119\/2026.<\/span><\/li>\n<li class=\"m-0 flex items-start gap-s !text-[#434248]\"><span class=\"mt-2 size-2 shrink-0 rounded-full bg-success-100\" aria-hidden=\"true\"\/><span class=\"text-body\">The case targets 39,069 wallets worth ~$293B; a hearing will now decide if the lost-property theory holds up.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2>2011-Era Coins Are Moving<\/h2>\n<p>The legal battle is unfolding alongside a wave of onchain activity from some of <span>bitcoin<\/span>\u2019s oldest addresses. On June 6, 2026, Galaxy Research <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/glxyresearch\/status\/2063345039795691739?s=20\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">flagged<\/a> a transaction involving 47.26 <span>BTC<\/span>, worth approximately $2.88 million, moving out of a wallet that had been untouched since June 17, 2011, a dormancy period of more than 15 years.<\/p>\n<p>The address, 18sLgPeB9wQVrE8JoWqtKtnucbsx3Lw1m7, is listed as defendant address No. 37923 in a New York Supreme Court case styled ABC Company, XYZ Company, and <a href=\"https:\/\/news.bitcoin.com\/anonymous-plaintiff-claims-293b-bitcoin-haul-targets-satoshis-dormant-wallets-in-ny-court-case\/\">Noah Doe v. John Does 1-39,069<\/a>, Index No. 153119\/2026. Alex Thorn, head of firmwide research at Galaxy, noted the movement on X, calling attention to the growing pattern of named addresses showing activity after years of silence.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMore 2011 coins that were claimed as \u2018lost\u2019 in the \u2018noah doe\u2019 NY state lost-and-found case are awakening and moving onchain,\u201d Thorn <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/intangiblecoins\/status\/2063345655167263137?s=20\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">wrote<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>That June 6 transaction was not isolated. Another transfer tied to the case, 25 <span>BTC<\/span> from a Casascius coin redemption, was spent at block height 952534 and <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/glxyresearch\/status\/2063010441014415687?s=20\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">discovered<\/a> by Galaxy Research. On June 2, a separate wallet dormant since March 2011 moved 35.55 <span>BTC<\/span>, becoming one of the first defendant addresses in the Noah Doe suit to register any onchain action after being named in court filings.<\/p>\n<p>Each of these movements chips away at the central premise of the lawsuit: that these wallets were abandoned.<\/p>\n<h2>The Noah Doe Lawsuit<\/h2>\n<p>Filed March 11, 2026, and amended May 1, the case rests on a novel legal theory. A pseudonymous plaintiff identified in court documents as Noah Doe, a New York resident, claims he developed an algorithm that identified dormant <span>bitcoin<\/span> wallets exhibiting what he describes as a security vulnerability. He placed lists of wallet public addresses on USB drives and delivered them to the NYPD\u2019s 17th Precinct in batches between December 2024 and April 2025.<\/p>\n<p>He then directed a cyber expert to insert OP_RETURN messages into each wallet directing holders to a webpage, where they had 90 days to demonstrate their wallets were not abandoned. Of 42,001 wallets initially identified, 424 took onchain action and were removed. The remaining 39,069, valued at roughly $293 billion at current market prices, became the basis for a declaratory judgment claim that Noah Doe and two Wyoming LLCs own them outright under New York\u2019s lost-and-found property statute.<\/p>\n<h2>The Amicus Intervention<\/h2>\n<p>On May 29, 2026, New York attorney <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/btclawyerguy\/status\/2062973772844487042?s=20\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Ian R. Cohen<\/a> filed a <a href=\"https:\/\/assets.bwbx.io\/documents\/users\/iqjWHBFdfxIU\/r.CPyVISzrmQ\/v0\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Proposed Order<\/a> to Show Cause along with a proposed amicus curiae brief, NYSCEF Doc. No. 33, before Hon. Kathy J. King in New York County Supreme Court. Cohen\u2019s brief, submitted on behalf of no party but as an independent voice for adversarial analysis, mounts a systematic legal challenge across seven points.<\/p>\n<p>His core argument: Article 7-B of the New York Personal Property Law, the lost-and-found statute the plaintiffs rely on, was written for tangible physical objects, not entries on a globally distributed <span>blockchain<\/span>. A person scanning a public ledger with an algorithm is not a \u201cfinder\u201d under the statute. <span>Bitcoin<\/span> cannot be physically deposited with police. And dormancy, Cohen argues, is not abandonment.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAbandonment requires intentional relinquishment of ownership and an external act manifesting that intent,\u201d Cohen wrote. Cohen\u2019s amicus further states:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cMere inactivity, no matter how prolonged, is not abandonment.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Cohen also flagged the proper legal framework. New York\u2019s Abandoned Property Law, amended in 2022 to specifically address unclaimed virtual currency, routes dormant <span>crypto<\/span> assets to the State Comptroller for escheat, not to private parties or Wyoming LLCs.<\/p>\n<p>He further challenged the suit\u2019s due process foundation, arguing OP_RETURN messages and a global press release do not constitute constitutionally adequate notice, particularly for deceased holders, non-English speakers, and wallets using older address formats that may not receive such messages.<\/p>\n<p>He also raised jurisdictional questions, noting that <span>bitcoin<\/span> has no cognizable legal situs in New York and that the vast majority of the 39,069 wallet holders are almost certainly not New York residents. Cohen\u2019s brief also pointed to a judicial recusal that had already occurred in the case.<\/p>\n<p>Acting Justice Emily Morales-Minerva recused herself on March 23, 2026, citing an ethical conflict with being directed to rule on a matter another justice in the same jurisdiction had already partially decided.<\/p>\n<h2>Court Acts on June 5<\/h2>\n<p>The court moved quickly. On June 5, 2026, Judge King issued a Decision and Order on Motion No. 001, characterized as an injunction and restraining order, and took action on Motion No. 004, Cohen\u2019s amicus-related filing. The proceedings were stayed and any push toward a default judgment was halted pending further hearing.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_820888\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-820888\" style=\"width:1312px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-820888\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Image source: Cohen\u2019s X post about the court case.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The stay is significant because the defendant wallet addresses, served via OP_RETURN and press release, are unlikely to appear and contest the case. Without adversarial input, the plaintiffs\u2019 theory risked proceeding unchecked toward an uncontested default. Cohen\u2019s intervention changed that calculus.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNot your keys, not your coins,\u201d Cohen wrote in his brief, invoking the foundational <span>bitcoin<\/span> principle and applying it directly to the court\u2019s consideration of the claim.<\/p>\n<h2>What This All Means<\/h2>\n<p>The case carries implications beyond the courtroom. If the Noah Doe theory prevailed, any party with <span>blockchain<\/span> analysis tools and a police station nearby could theoretically target <a href=\"https:\/\/news.bitcoin.com\/decade-old-bitcoin-wallets-reemerge-and-shift-37-million-as-btc-hits-2026-low\/\">long-dormant wallets<\/a> anywhere on the <span>bitcoin<\/span> network. Cohen\u2019s brief explicitly named that risk, warning the court that accepting the plaintiffs\u2019 argument would threaten the property rights of every self-custody <span>bitcoin<\/span> holder in New York.<\/p>\n<p>The wallet list in the case includes addresses linked in public reporting to the 2011 <a href=\"http:\/\/www.bitcoin.com\/get-started\/what-is-mt-gox\/\" class=\"lar_link lar_link_outgoing\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Mt. Gox<\/a> hack, and others analyzed as potentially associated with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.binance.com\/en\/price\/bitcoin\" class=\"lar_link lar_link_outgoing\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Bitcoin<\/a>\u2019s genesis-era mining. The \u201c1Feex\u201d address, listed as John Doe No. 1, holds approximately 80,000 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.binance.com\/en\/price\/bitcoin\/\" class=\"lar_link lar_link_outgoing\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">BTC<\/a> and has been widely discussed in connection with the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.bitcoin.com\/get-started\/what-is-mt-gox\/\" class=\"lar_link lar_link_outgoing\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Mt Gox<\/a> theft.<\/p>\n<p>Cohen noted that a New York state-court ownership declaration over assets potentially subject to Japanese civil rehabilitation proceedings and U.S. federal forfeiture interest would risk serious legal conflict. The court\u2019s stay means the case now heads toward a hearing with those questions on the table.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/news.bitcoin.com\/ny-court-pauses-default-judgment-after-lawyer-argues-39069-bitcoin-wallets-were-not-abandoned\/\">Source link <\/a><br \/>\n<br \/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>(Originally posted on : Bitcoin News ) Key Takeaways On June 6, 47.26 BTC dormant since 2011 moved onchain from defendant address No. 37923 in the Noah Doe case. NY attorney Ian R. Cohen filed an amicus brief on May 29, prompting a June 5 court stay in Index No. 153119\/2026. The case targets 39,069 [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":19,"featured_media":73660,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0},"categories":[32],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73659"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/19"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=73659"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73659\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/73660"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=73659"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=73659"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=73659"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}