The Office of Foreign Assets Control of the Department of the Treasury is facing a lawsuit over the ban on the DeFi application Tornado Cash.
Coin Center’s Executive Director Jerry Brito announced today on Twitter that the leading crypto lobby group has filed a lawsuit in court challenging OFAC’s authority to sanction Tornado Cash smart contracts.
– “Not only are we fighting for privacy rights, but if this precedent is allowed to stand, OFAC could add entire protocols like Bitcoin or Ethereum to the sanctions list in the future, thereby banning them outright without any public process. This cannot go unchallenged,” wrote Brito.
Brito added that Coin Center will challenge OFAC in the Supreme Court if necessary.
In a post published on Coin Center’s website, Research Director Brito and Peter Van Valkenburgh elaborated on the details of the lawsuit. They explained that the lawsuit presents four key claims.
It argues that the Department of the Treasury has exceeded its statutory authority in issuing sanctions, and that the Treasury’s own regulations limit the ability to sanction protocols. They also state that the Treasury did not consider the consequences of the sanctions and has since contradicted its own rules, asserting that Americans should have the right to make private donations for causes.
Co-host of the Bankless podcast David Hoffman, former Tornado Cash user Patrick O’Sullivan, and an anonymous operator of the 688th support brigade are co-plaintiffs in the case alongside Coin Center.
In the post, Coin Center thanked Consovoy McCarthy, whose legal team will represent the plaintiffs, as well as Abraham Sutherland.
The note concluded with a strong statement expressing confidence in the case.
– “Privacy is normal, and when we win the lawsuit, using Tornado Cash will again be normal,” the text states.
