Key Highlights
- New York Supreme Court has temporarily halted proceedings in a case involving 39,069 inactive Bitcoin wallets valued at approximately $234 billion
- An individual using the pseudonym “Noah Doe” initiated the legal action under New York’s abandoned property statutes
- Ian R. Cohen, a New York attorney, submitted an amicus curiae brief contending that cryptocurrency wallets cannot be deemed legally abandoned
- Multiple wallets named in the complaint have begun transferring cryptocurrency following public disclosure of the lawsuit
- The court has scheduled a hearing for July 14 to determine the admissibility of the amicus brief
A judge presiding over New York’s Supreme Court has temporarily suspended proceedings in an unusual lawsuit seeking to establish ownership rights over approximately 40,000 inactive Bitcoin wallets. The complaint, initiated by someone identifying themselves only as “Noah Doe,” centers on digital wallets containing roughly 3.8 million BTCâvalued at approximately $234 billion based on current market rates.
On June 4, Judge Kathy J. King issued an order that was made public the following day, suspending all case activities, including any progression toward default judgment. The court has set July 14 as the date for a hearing at the courthouse in New York County.
The litigation, formally titled ABC Company, XYZ Company, and Noah Doe v. John Does 1-39,069, was originally filed on March 11, 2026, with amendments submitted on May 1. According to court documents, Noah Doe developed an algorithmic system to locate dormant wallets containing a specific security flaw. Between December 2024 and April 2025, he reportedly delivered USB storage devices with the wallet information to the NYPD’s 17th Precinct.
Subsequently, Noah Doe engaged a cybersecurity specialist to transmit OP_RETURN blockchain messages to each wallet owner, directing them to a website where they had a 90-day window to demonstrate their wallets remained actively controlled. From an initial list of 42,001 wallets, 424 wallet owners came forward and were excluded from the suit. The remaining 39,069 wallets became the subject of the declaratory judgment petition under New York’s statutes governing lost property.
Critical Legal Brief Triggers Case Suspension
On May 29, Ian R. Cohen, a New York-based attorney, filed a petition to participate as amicus curiae, accompanied by a comprehensive 26-page legal brief challenging the lawsuit’s foundation. Cohen has no client relationship with any involved party and claims no personal stake in the case’s resolution.
The central thesis of Cohen’s argument asserts that New York’s lost-and-found legislation was drafted to address tangible, physical items rather than digital blockchain-based assets. He contends that using automated algorithms to scan public blockchain ledgers does not legally qualify someone as a “finder” under statutory definitions.
Cohen highlighted that in 2022, New York lawmakers specifically modified the state’s Abandoned Property Law to address unclaimed virtual currency. Under these provisions, dormant cryptocurrency must be transferred to the State Comptroller’s custody rather than being available for private claims.
Additionally, Cohen challenged the adequacy of the plaintiff’s notification methodology, arguing that OP_RETURN blockchain messages combined with a worldwide press announcement fail to satisfy constitutional requirements for proper legal notice, especially concerning deceased wallet owners or individuals who don’t speak English.
“A wallet that has been dormant for ten years, whose private key is stored on a steel plate in a bank vault, is not abandoned property. It is securely held property,” Cohen wrote.
Dormant Wallets Begin Showing Activity
Following widespread media coverage of the lawsuit, numerous wallets identified in the complaint have initiated cryptocurrency transfers. On June 6, a wallet that had remained inactive since June 2011 transferred 47.26 BTC, representing approximately $2.88 million in value. Two days earlier, on June 2, a different wallet untouched since March 2011 moved 35.55 BTC.
Galaxy Research head Alex Thorn noted the activity on X, saying 2011-era coins named in the case are “awakening and moving onchain.”
Among the addresses listed in the complaint is the “1Feex” wallet, which contains approximately 80,000 BTC and has been connected in previous investigative reports to the 2011 Mt. Gox hack. Cohen’s legal brief emphasized that a New York court’s ownership determination regarding these particular assets might create jurisdictional conflicts with the ongoing Japanese civil rehabilitation process and potential federal forfeiture claims in the United States.
The judicial stay ensures the case will now advance to the July 14 hearing with Cohen’s legal arguments officially entered into the record. The plaintiffs must submit their counter-arguments by July 7.
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