Two Canadian Law Firms Tapped as Counsels in QuadrigaCX Case

Canada’s law firms Miller Thomson and Cox & Palmer were appointed by the Nova Scotia Supreme Court to represent some 115,000 customers of the QuadrigaCX cryptocurrency exchange. The firms will work closely with affected QuadrigaCX users, who are owed about $260 million, as a court-appointed monitor continues to look for the money they lost.

More than a dozen lawyers filed competing submissions in Halifax before the court justice Michael Wood, who then appointed said firms as counsels to represent creditors in the ongoing QuadrigaCX litigation.

Miller Thomson and Cox & Palmer are now tasked with the mission to recover C$190 million in Cryptocurrencies Cryptocurrencies By using cryptography, virtual currencies, known as cryptocurrencies, are nearly counterfeit-proof digital currencies that are built on blockchain technology. Comprised of decentralized networks, blockchain technology is not overseen by a central authority.Therefore, cryptocurrencies function in a decentralized nature which theoretically makes them immune to government interference. The term, cryptocurrency derives from the origin of the encryption techniques that are employed to secure the netw By using cryptography, virtual currencies, known as cryptocurrencies, are nearly counterfeit-proof digital currencies that are built on blockchain technology. Comprised of decentralized networks, blockchain technology is not overseen by a central authority.Therefore, cryptocurrencies function in a decentralized nature which theoretically makes them immune to government interference. The term, cryptocurrency derives from the origin of the encryption techniques that are employed to secure the netw Read this Term plus another C$70 million in cash from the shuttered Vancouver-based Exchange Exchange An exchange is known as a marketplace that supports the trading of derivatives, commodities, securities, and other financial instruments.Generally, an exchange is accessible through a digital platform or sometimes at a tangible address where investors organize to perform trading. Among the chief responsibilities of an exchange would be to uphold honest and fair-trading practices. These are instrumental in making sure that the distribution of supported security rates on that exchange are effectiv An exchange is known as a marketplace that supports the trading of derivatives, commodities, securities, and other financial instruments.Generally, an exchange is accessible through a digital platform or sometimes at a tangible address where investors organize to perform trading. Among the chief responsibilities of an exchange would be to uphold honest and fair-trading practices. These are instrumental in making sure that the distribution of supported security rates on that exchange are effectiv Read this Term. Legal representation for QuadrigaCX’s victims would give them a slice of the administrative charges to cover their professional fees while advocating on clients' behalf over any issues that might appear.

“The Court has received competing motions by or on behalf of users of the Applicants’ platform. They all seek essentially the same relief, which is: 1. appointment of a representative creditors committee of users; 2. appointment of representative legal counsel to act on behalf of affected users on the instructions of the representative committee; and 3. providing access to the existing administrative charge over the assets of the Applicants to secure payment of the reasonable fees and disbursements of the representative counsel,” the court further explains.

QuadrigaCX misplaced another $500,000

QuadrigaCX was shut down last month following the sudden death of its founder and CEO Gerald Cotton in December. The five-year-old business reportedly misplaced another $500,000 in cold wallets. Court documents say the $190 million in missing cryptocurrency is locked in offline digital wallets while Cotton was the only person who had the password to the company’s wallets.

In the meantime, the court-appointed representative counsel for employees and retirees because that “vulnerable group had little means to pursue a claim in the complex CCAA proceedings.”

At one point, the monitor appointed by the court, Ernst & Young, said lawyers' fees at this stage should be capped at $100,000. However, QuadrigaCX officials claim the exchange has now run out of money.

"As of today, we don't have anything," Maurice Chiasson, a lawyer representing the insolvent exchange admitted last week.