Cyber & Crypto

3 Hare Court’s Cyber & Crypto practice covers the full spectrum of cyber fraud, cryptoassets, and digital technology. Our work encompasses high-stakes commercial litigation and cross-border asset recovery alongside complex insolvency and strategic advisory mandates.

Members act in disputes involving the recovery of digital assets, regulatory enforcement, and the governance of distributed ledger technology, as well as wider commercial disputes, providing a comprehensive service that addresses the lifecycle of digital finance. We have represented a broad spectrum of market participants including software developers, exchanges, decentralised autonomous organisations, monetary authorities, institutional investors, cyber victims, insolvency practitioners, and more.

Members have acted in some of the most significant disputes to date, ranging from the liquidation of major crypto-exchanges to high-value civil fraud claims involving digital assets. Drawing on members’ broader experience in obtaining and defending worldwide freezing orders, the team is adept at securing assets in the digital realm, including successfully freezing cryptoassets in cross-border insolvency proceedings and advising on the particular difficulties with tracing.

We also offer a unique advisory capability driven by members with backgrounds as industry insiders and former regulator personnel. This includes helping shape the legal landscape for digital finance through direct involvement in drafting industry-first network access rules, drawing on Chambers’ considerable experience with the ISDA Master Agreement, and advising central banks on digital asset frameworks. Members’ experience is extensive, covering for example the structuring of DeFi privacy protocols,governance of decentralised autonomous organisations (DAOs), stablecoins, simple agreements for future tokens (SAFTs), managing token generation events, and advising on the regulatory requirements for privacy mixers.

Our practice integrates with Chambers’ offshore capability in key digital asset hubs including Gibraltar, the BVI, and the wider Caribbean. The team has acted in cross-border disputes where digital asset entities are domiciled, regularly appearing in offshore courts on matters involving exchange insolvencies, fraud, corporate governance, and enforcement.

Members’ expertise extends beyond digital assets to encompass emerging technologies more broadly, including artificial intelligence and robotics. Our members are particularly involved in discussions and policy considerations around smart legal contracts and smart legal opinions.