7 The Legal Character of Money

Subject(s):

Electronic money — Debt — Currency — Monetary obligations

This chapter analyses how the law regards money as a species of property with unique characteristics. The most significant issue is that claims for money (debt claims) are regarded in law as different from claims for any other thing. If a person breaches an obligation to pay money, the remedy is an order to pay that amount of money. The question of how much damage (if any) the payee has suffered through the refusal to pay is simply irrelevant, and concepts like mitigation, remoteness, or foreseeable damage have no place in this system. Therefore, in an action related to virtual currency today, the basic question of whether the virtual currency should be treated as ‘money’ or not for this purpose is largely determinative as to the potential outcome of the litigation.