Product Description

The idea of digital property permeating all aspects of our lives is gaining recognition as technology develops and our digital and physical lives become intertwined. Regardless of their role, every advisor has clients with digital assets––be they those with digital footprints limited to e-mail, platform economy users driving revenue through e-commerce apps, small business mom-and-pop outfits, or tech entrepreneurs. While there are numerous planning aspects for an individual’s assets, there are scant resources on digital asset awareness. Digital Asset Entanglement: Unraveling the Intersection of Estate Laws & Technology strives to bring awareness to the role digital assets play in estate and succession planning.

The authors use the estate of Gerald Cotten, his company, Quadriga, and its cryptocurrency exchange, QuadrigaCX, as a case study to illustrate the challenges of managing digital assets. They also highlight the potential financial and emotional loss resulting from digital assets being undisclosed, physically or legally inaccessible, or if there is a protracted delay in access.

The subject of digital assets is new and growing, and Quadriga’s bankruptcy trustee case provides a vivid opportunity to analyze, educate, and update estate advisors in this area. Digital Asset Entanglement: Unraveling the Intersection of Estate Laws & Technology aims to inform global advisors on estate and succession law issues in connection with digital assets, and proposes a methodology for analysis including nuances of gaining post-mortem physical and legal access to digital assets.

Table of Contents

 Introduction
 
 Chapter 1 – Quadriga and the Estate
 
 Chapter 2 – Orientation to the Legalities of Digital Assets
 
 Chapter 3 – The Digital Glass House
 
 Chapter 4 – Digital Assets Case Analysis Framework
 
 Chapter 5 – Case Analysis Framework Applied to Quadriga
 
 Chapter 6 – The Digital Assets Clause
 
 Chapter 7 – Implications for the Advisor Using Client Personas
 
 Chapter 8 – Conclusions