Chambers News
Digital assets in financial remedy cases: what practitioners need to know
12 May 2026In our latest Bedford Row Bite Size video, Ben Fearnley talks to Mark Ablett about one of family law's fastest-evolving areas: crypto assets in financial remedy proceedings.
The Property (Digital Assets) Act 2025 has confirmed that property rights can exist in digital assets even where they fall outside the traditional categories of chose in action or chose in possession. For crypto, essentially encrypted data distributed across blockchain networks, this legal recognition matters enormously.
In financial remedy cases, crypto disputes typically raise five key challenges: disclosure and tracing; taxation; valuation volatility; liquidity; and enforcement. Of these, enforcement remains the toughest nut to crack, particularly where assets or respondents sit outside the jurisdiction. Ben explores these and shares some tips about how to tackle such cases.