A 10-year legal battle by IT specialist James Howells to recover a hard drive containing an estimated £600m in bitcoin has come to an end after a judge ruled against him.
Howells, 39, sought to force Newport City Council to allow him to excavate a landfill site where he claims the device was mistakenly discarded in 2013.
However, Judge Keyser KC, sitting in the High Court, dismissed the case, stating it had “no realistic prospect of succeeding” even if it went to trial.
The judge said: “The particulars of the claim do not show any reasonable grounds for bringing this case. Furthermore, the council’s ownership of the hard drive provides a complete answer to the claim.”
Howells’s legal argument, presented by pro bono lawyers, was that the council’s refusal to allow a targeted search of a specific landfill area was unjust.
His legal team insisted the operation would involve expert excavators and precise technology rather than a “needle in a haystack” search.
However, the council countered that the hard drive became their property upon disposal and cited environmental regulations prohibiting excavation at the landfill. Judge Keyser agreed with this position, adding there was no compelling reason for the case to proceed to trial.
Howells, who appeared in court in December, recounted how the hard drive containing his Bitcoin wallet was accidentally thrown away during an office clear-out in 2013.
His former partner had mistaken the device for rubbish and taken it to the dump. Realising the mistake shortly after, Howells has spent years lobbying the council, offering to share the potential fortune, but to no avail.
Dean Armstrong KC, representing Howells, described the proposed excavation as highly targeted and feasible. Meanwhile, James Goudie KC, representing Newport City Council, argued the landfill’s environmental permits strictly prohibit such searches.
Despite the ruling, Howells remains undeterred. With speculation that the bitcoins could be worth £1bn by next year, he has vowed to explore every legal avenue, including a potential appeal to the Supreme Court.
The case has captured international attention, symbolising both the risks of early cryptocurrency investments and the challenges of recovering lost digital fortunes.
