Why Legal Authority Does Not Equal Bitcoin Control
In the traditional financial system, a court order is a master key. If a judge orders a bank to freeze an account or transfer funds, the bank complies. In the Bitcoin system, there is no bank. A court can order a Trustee to move Bitcoin, but if the Trustee cannot produce the technical keys, the court order is effectively a piece of paper. We help families and professionals bridge the gap between legal directives and cryptographic reality.
The Foundational Mismatch
- Courts can compel institutions; Bitcoin has no institutions.
- Legal empowerment without technical capability leads to fiduciary failure.
- Technical execution must be architected alongside legal authority.
Where Legal Structures Break
The Institution Assumption
Most U.S. estate plans assume a titled asset environment where registries and intermediaries solve access issues. Bitcoin is a bearer asset; ownership is defined solely by the possession of private keys, not a name on a ledger.
Fiduciary Paralysis
An Executor or Trustee may be legally authorised to manage Bitcoin but technically incapable of signing a transaction. This creates a lethal delay during market volatility or tax deadlines. For family offices and institutional contexts, see our Family Office solutions that address fiduciary paralysis at scale.
The "Compel" Conflict
A court may order a distribution that is technically impossible to execute because keys were lost or the custody architecture was poorly documented. This creates unnecessary litigation risk for the family.
Probate vs. Keys
Probate courts handle the transition of legal title. They do not handle the transition of cryptographic secrets. Without a technical protocol, the legal title is granted to an asset that has become unrecoverable.
The Role of the Fiduciary
For lawyers and trustees, Bitcoin represents a new category of professional risk. Addressing the legal side is only half the battle; ensuring the technical execution is possible is the other half.
A Technical Manual for Legal Directives
We provide the "Technical Manual" that your fiduciaries need to succeed. Our U.S. Estate Planning approach includes an Estate Plan Protocol (EPP) that ensures the legal authority granted in your Will or Trust can be translated into signed transactions when the time comes.
Infrastructure for Execution
We don't replace the lawyer; we empower them. By providing collaborative custody, we ensure that a Trustee has a clear, documented path to exercise their legal authority without having to become a technical expert.
Governance Layers
Our multisig architecture provides a natural governance layer where the Trustee can act as a signer within a secure framework, supported by TBA's technical oversight.
Auditable Protocols
We provide the documentation and trail of prudence that fiduciaries require to demonstrate they have met their duty of care regarding digital bearer assets.
Align Your Legal & Technical Strategy
Don't assume your legal documents solve your Bitcoin risk. Evaluate how your fiduciaries would actually sign a transaction today.