ABSTRACT
This chapter begins with a discussion of what Bitcoin is (as a legal animal) and then turns to consider how Bitcoin judgments could be made. It examines the extent to which the English courts can or should give judgment in Bitcoin for the moment, though, Bitcoin seems likely to remain significant among cryptocurrencies. The fact that Bitcoin is used as a payment method or alternative currency by some people in some contracts could suggest that the English court should accord it the same status as foreign currency (and, of course, so far as El Salvador is concerned, it is). It is therefore informative to begin by analysing the basis upon which the English courts began their practice of giving judgments in foreign currency. Proprietary claims are most likely to be the ones best satisfied by a judgment for the Bitcoin.
