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I’ve mentioned elsewhere that I’m a practicing attorney in the Mountain West region of the U.S. and a Bitcoin hobbyist. I have been reading this forum for a few months and mining for under a month. Last week I registered for this forum and started posting. I would most certainly consider myself a “newbie.”
I am posting because I’m want to meaningfully contribute to the Bitcoin community and economy. The best way I know how to do that is by introducing myself and offering consulting and escrow-type services to community members.
About Me: My law practices centers around real estate matters, business transactions, and litigation. I assist lots of folks with buying and selling real estate, businesses assets, and business interests. I also act as an escrow agent along the way when the terms of a real estate or business deal necessitate it. Having read the Satoshi paper a few times, it has occurred to me that how bitcoins are transferred between parties resembles how real estate is transferred between parties (e.g., use of a public record, deed/hash, block/title chains, importance of time, etc.). Hence, my interest in offering consulting and escrow services. You’re welcome to learn more about me by sending me a PM or reviewing my public Linkedin profile (
http://linkd.in/1dKf5Pc).
At the moment, I see myself helping folks based in the U.S. who have already agreed to a transaction. I can help folks document their transactions and perform them as a neutral third party (escrow). My role would not be as an attorney, but as a privately retained consultant and trustee. I have formed a corporation for this purpose, obtained a client trust account at bank, and am in the process of drafting standard forms for clients to use in documenting their pre-brokered deals with one another. I hope to have a website for the corporation in the next month or so (liberal arts background (graduate degree in rhetoric) + law degree = could be a while). I am not opposed to offering my services through my law firm and acting as an attorney, but it would be more cost effective the other way – especially for smallish transactions and transactions that do not need an advocate. Anyway, my ultimate goal is to help fund my hobby and maybe a date or two with my wife.
I have identified and read federal law/guidance (as well as my state’s) relevant to escrow services in the area of crypto-currency and feel comfortable in providing said services (that’s not a legal opinion; my opinion on this could change; and my opinion is based on a certain structure not discuss here). However, I have not read a ton about what is missing in current escrow practices. I would love to hear your thoughts on the current state of escrow services in the Bitcoin community and how it could be improved, changed, etc.
Looking forward to hearing from you.
