Crypto Assets
Freezing Injunctions
Crypto Freezing Injunctions
Specialist Counsel for Urgent Crypto Asset Recovery
When your client’s digital assets are at risk, you need Counsel who can move immediately, advise with precision, and deliver results in a fast-moving and technically complex area of law.
St. Joseph Chambers provides specialist barrister support to solicitors handling crypto fraud, theft, and asset dissipation matters from initial advice through to urgent High Court applications and beyond.
Why Instruct Us on Crypto Freezing Matters?
The crypto asset landscape moves fast. Assets can be transferred across wallets, converted, and effectively concealed within hours of a fraud being committed. Instructing the right Counsel early is not just advisable it is essential to preserving your client’s prospects of recovery.
Our barristers bring together expertise in commercial fraud, asset recovery, and interim remedies to provide you with the clear, actionable advice you need to move your client’s matter forward without delay.
We are available to advise at short notice, draft urgent applications, and appear before the High Court including on a without-notice basis where the circumstances demand it.
What We Can Do for Your Client
Without-Notice Freezing Injunctions
Where urgency requires it, We are experienced in attending freezing injunction relating to crypto Assets and know how to present compelling evidence and explain tracability to the court.
Worldwide Freezing Orders
Where your client’s assets have moved across jurisdictions, we advise on and pursue Worldwide Freezing Orders, with the English court’s jurisdiction used as the foundation for international enforcement.
Proprietary Injunctions
Where assets are traceable, a proprietary injunction may be available giving your client a proprietary claim over the assets themselves, rather than merely a personal claim against the defendant. This is particularly significant in insolvency scenarios.
Norwich Pharmacal and Bankers Trust Orders
To identify unknown fraudsters and compel disclosure from exchanges and custodians, we advise on and pursue non-party disclosure orders as a matter of urgency alongside or following the initial freezing application.
Orders Against Unknown Defendants
The English courts have confirmed jurisdiction to grant orders against defendants known only by a wallet address. We advise on the requirements and draft the necessary pleadings and evidence to support such applications.
Ongoing Litigation Strategy
Beyond the interim stage, we work with you to develop a clear litigation strategy advising on proprietary claims, tracing remedies, enforcement options, and the interplay with any parallel criminal or regulatory proceedings.
We are experienced practitioners in the developing body of English law on digital assets, including:
- Cryptocurrency as property under English law following AA v Persons Unknown [2019] and the line of authorities that followed
- Applications under s.37 of the Senior Courts Act 1981 in the digital asset context
- The court’s evolving approach to service out of the jurisdiction, alternative service, and anonymous defendants in crypto cases
- Interaction with the Financial Markets Law Committee guidance and the UK Jurisdiction Taskforce Legal Statement on Cryptoassets and Smart Contracts
- Cross-border enforcement and the use of English orders as the basis for proceedings in other jurisdictions
Working With Us
We understand that when you are managing an urgent crypto matter, you need a barrister who is easy to instruct, responsive, and delivers clear and practical advice without unnecessary delay.
We offer
- Rapid response available to advise and act at short notice when assets are at immediate risk
- Fixed fees quoted immediately for emergency freezing injunction and generally within an hour for advice and drafting
- Clear written advice setting out the legal position, prospects, and recommended strategy so you can advise your client with confidence
- High Court experience appearing regularly before the Business and Property Courts in commercial fraud and asset recovery matters
