Seed unavailable — hardware wallet (2021)

Survives

Case description

An April 2021 estate case describes a deceased who had stored their hardware wallet seed with their estate attorney. The attorney had retired in 2019. The retired attorney's records were held by the state bar association under its mandatory file retention policy. The seed was located after a two-month records request.

Custody context

Stress condition	Seed phrase unavailable
Custody system	Hardware wallet (single key)
Outcome	Survives
Documentation	Unknown
Year observed	2021
Country	Unknown

Structural dependencies observed

Institutional cooperation required

Outcome interpretation

Access remained possible under the reported conditions.

Source

Publicly Reported

Evidence type

Forum post

Evidence link

https://medium.com/@wayne_huang/rsa-2015-panel-bitcoin-s-future-threats-expert-s-roundtable-based-on-150-case-studies-92cc35e68e30

Related cases involving seed phrase unavailable

146 cases involve seed phrase unavailable 274 cases involve hardware wallet (single key) View archive statistics →

This archive documents observed custody survivability failures. It does not attempt to document all Bitcoin losses or security incidents. Submit a case

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Framework references

Where Bitcoin Custody Intersects Legal and Fiduciary Authority

Where custody creates gaps in estate planning, fiduciary duty, and professional responsibility.

Professional Scope Boundary Matrix

What each professional or product covers, what they do not, and where gaps form between them.

The Independent Assessment Layer in Bitcoin Custody

How independent diagnostic layers emerge when multiple parties depend on shared infrastructure.