Closing arguments have commenced in London on March 12 in the legal battle between the Crypto Open Patent Alliance (COPA) and Craig Wright, the Australian computer scientist who asserts he is the pseudonymous Bitcoin creator Satoshi Nakamoto. COPA presented its case first, with the proceedings expected to last three to four days.

COPA is currently seeking injunctive relief to prohibit Wright from continuing to claim he is Nakamoto. As the claimant, COPA must prove that Wright is not Nakamoto. Wright has maintained his identity as Satoshi Nakamoto since 2016.

Wright faces allegations of extensive document forgery to support his claim of being Nakamoto. According to COPA’s closing argument, “Dr. Wright has been shown to have lied on an extraordinary scale. He has invented an entire biographical history, producing one tranche after another of forged documents to support it.” COPA plans to have the documents submitted by Wright in the case reviewed for potential perjury charges.

The trial commenced on Feb. 5, following Wright’s offer to settle out of court on Jan. 24, which COPA declined.

COPA, established in 2020, aims to promote the adoption and development of cryptocurrency technologies and eliminate patents as a hindrance to progress and innovation. Its 33 members include prominent companies like Coinbase, Block, Meta, MicroStrategy, Kraken, Paradigm, Uniswap, and Worldcoin. Wright holds numerous patents related to blockchain technology.

The issue of intellectual property rights looms over the trial, as Wright has a history of litigation. In 2023, he sued 13 Bitcoin Core developers and several companies for copyright infringements linked to the Bitcoin white paper, file format, and database rights to the Bitcoin blockchain. The Bitcoin Legal Defense Fund highlighted the impact of these lawsuits on developers in the Bitcoin community.

Wright’s copyright registration for the Bitcoin white paper and its code in 2019 has led to ongoing legal disputes, including a current case in the UK regarding the rights to the white paper. The white paper is now under an MIT open-source license, preventing Wright from making additional copyright claims on it.

In a related development, the integration of AI and blockchain technology in the courtroom could revolutionize legal proceedings.

For more news and updates on the cryptocurrency industry, explore Global Crypto News.

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