Catholic University Law Review
Abstract
This Comment examines the legal implications of the sanctions issued by the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Asset Control against Tornado Cash, an application that enables user privacy protection in transactions on the Ethereum blockchain. With the rapid expansion of the digital asset revolution, policymakers remained puzzled as to how to best establish a regulatory scheme that protects consumers without chilling innovation and investment in the digital asset market. The Office of Foreign Assets Control’s issuance of sanctions against Tornado Cash was an attempt to regulate an extremely volatile and unpredictable market. These sanctions prohibited all licit activity on the application, and as a result, developers and digital asset advocates filed suit against the Treasury Department. This Comment analyzes the claims raised in Van Loon v. Dep’t of Treasury and Coin Center v. Dep’t of Treasury, and it considers flaws in their respective district court decisions.
Recommended Citation
Emily Arterbury,
Coin Center v. Yellen Prompts Reconsideration of the Vast Deference Afforded to the Department of the Treasury,
73
Cath. U. L. Rev.
473
(2024).
Available at:
https://scholarship.law.edu/lawreview/vol73/iss3/8
