Setback for Craig Wright as UK Supreme Court Refuses Appeal in Libel Case

The U.K. Supreme Court has rejected Craig Wright’s request to appeal a decision in his legal dispute with popular Bitcoin podcaster Peter McCormack, as reported by a lawyer on Thursday.

The recent development seems to be another setback for the Australian computer scientist. Despite his persistent claims of being Satoshi Nakamoto, he has been unable to provide convincing evidence and has initiated legal actions against those who doubted his assertion.

Peter McCormack Wins

Wright filed a defamation lawsuit against McCormack for rejecting the former’s claim of being Satoshi Nakamoto, the pseudonymous creator of Bitcoin. In 2023, Wright’s libel case ended in defeat, and this latest ruling might bring an end to their prolonged five-year legal dispute.

Rupert Cowper-Coles, a partner at the law firm RPC acting as McCormack’s representative, stated,

“We actually only just found out about it but it was at the end of end of last year, (the) Supreme Court refused permission for Craig Wright’s appeal. So they’re very pleased that judgment stands – (the) one pound nominal damages award, which Craig has tried to appeal twice unsuccessfully.”

McCormack confirmed the development via X (formerly Twitter), expressing relief that the Supreme Court denied Wright’s final appeal. He added,

“Permission to appeal was refused by three Supreme Court justices, Lord Briggs, Lady Rose, and Lord Richards, on grounds the appeal did not raise an arguable question of law. This is the end of the line for Wright’s substantive claim against me. 5 years of hell over, a small amount of hell to deal with on costs still but we did it.”

Wright Offers Settlement to COPA

In a related legal battle, Wright reportedly extended a settlement offer to the members of the Crypto Open Patent Alliance (COPA) and other involved parties. The detailed letter outlining the terms of the proposed settlement was published on Dr. Wright’s personal blog.

The letter expressed Wright’s willingness to bring an end to several legal disputes initiated by him. The proposed settlement is particularly noteworthy, as it suggests waiving Wright’s database rights and copyrights related to BTC, BCH, and ABC databases. Moreover, he offers an “irrevocable license in perpetuity” to his opposing parties, who collectively control, operate, and/or own those databases.

Wright’s settlement offer adds a new chapter to the ongoing controversies surrounding his claims and legal entanglements within the crypto community.