New committee seeks to aid lawyers representing QuadrigaCX users

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The two law firms representing the customers of failed crypto exchange QuadrigaCX have formed a steering committee to help them in the case against the now-shuttered exchange. The firms, Miller Thomson and Cox & Palmer, appointed the seven members from a pool of 119 applicants. Among the members is a crypto trader who has prior experience with the Mt. Gox insolvency proceedings.

The lead counsel, Miller Thompson LLP, initially applied to form a committee with five members. But after receiving more than a hundred applications, the law firm selected seven to represent the group. Miller Thompson said affected users who didn’t wish to be represented can submit an opt-out form.

According to court documents, the committee members are obliged to act in the best interest of the affected users. They are also to advise and instruct the representative counsel wheb necessary. 

The members are Parham Pajou, an accounting expert; David Ballagh, a retired engineer, and Magdalena Gronownska, a blockchain consultant. Also on the committee is Ryan Kenner, a professional trader who served as a market-maker on Quadriga. The counsel also picked Eric Bachour, a full-time crypto trader who was a victim of the infamous Mt. Gox collapse. Bachour will bring with him a great deal of knowledge on bankruptcy and insolvency, the court documents stated.

Nova Scotia Supreme Court Judge Michael Wood signed off on the committee. Wood is the one who has been overseeing the case. Ernst & Young, the exchange’s court-appointed monitor also signed off on the committee.

According to the court documents, the committee shall “be entitled, on the advice of the representative counsel, to reach any settlement agreements, advocate on behalf of the affected users, and compromise any rights, entitlements or claims of the affected users.”

Quadriga has continued to dominate the headlines, with more revelations coming to light every so often. Just days ago, Bloomberg reported that the co-founder, Michael Patryn, served 18 months in a U.S federal prison before he got deported to Canada. His crime had been identity theft related to a bank and credit card scam. 

Curiously, he had served the sentence under the name Dhahani. In a report by a Canadian newspaper last year, Patryn vehemently denied any links to this name and the criminal past. However, Bloomberg reportedly got hold of his records, proving that he had changed his name before starting Quadriga with the deceased Gerald Cotten.