diff --git a/api/poktroll/proof/event.pulsar.go b/api/poktroll/proof/event.pulsar.go
index fa9a83ea1..9ec8937e5 100644
--- a/api/poktroll/proof/event.pulsar.go
+++ b/api/poktroll/proof/event.pulsar.go
@@ -2805,11 +2805,11 @@ func (x *fastReflection_EventProofUpdated) ProtoMethods() *protoiface.Methods {
 }
 
 var (
-	md_EventProofValidityChecked              protoreflect.MessageDescriptor
-	fd_EventProofValidityChecked_proof        protoreflect.FieldDescriptor
-	fd_EventProofValidityChecked_block_height protoreflect.FieldDescriptor
-	fd_EventProofValidityChecked_proof_status protoreflect.FieldDescriptor
-	fd_EventProofValidityChecked_reason       protoreflect.FieldDescriptor
+	md_EventProofValidityChecked                protoreflect.MessageDescriptor
+	fd_EventProofValidityChecked_proof          protoreflect.FieldDescriptor
+	fd_EventProofValidityChecked_block_height   protoreflect.FieldDescriptor
+	fd_EventProofValidityChecked_proof_status   protoreflect.FieldDescriptor
+	fd_EventProofValidityChecked_failure_reason protoreflect.FieldDescriptor
 )
 
 func init() {
@@ -2818,7 +2818,7 @@ func init() {
 	fd_EventProofValidityChecked_proof = md_EventProofValidityChecked.Fields().ByName("proof")
 	fd_EventProofValidityChecked_block_height = md_EventProofValidityChecked.Fields().ByName("block_height")
 	fd_EventProofValidityChecked_proof_status = md_EventProofValidityChecked.Fields().ByName("proof_status")
-	fd_EventProofValidityChecked_reason = md_EventProofValidityChecked.Fields().ByName("reason")
+	fd_EventProofValidityChecked_failure_reason = md_EventProofValidityChecked.Fields().ByName("failure_reason")
 }
 
 var _ protoreflect.Message = (*fastReflection_EventProofValidityChecked)(nil)
@@ -2904,9 +2904,9 @@ func (x *fastReflection_EventProofValidityChecked) Range(f func(protoreflect.Fie
 			return
 		}
 	}
-	if x.Reason != "" {
-		value := protoreflect.ValueOfString(x.Reason)
-		if !f(fd_EventProofValidityChecked_reason, value) {
+	if x.FailureReason != "" {
+		value := protoreflect.ValueOfString(x.FailureReason)
+		if !f(fd_EventProofValidityChecked_failure_reason, value) {
 			return
 		}
 	}
@@ -2931,8 +2931,8 @@ func (x *fastReflection_EventProofValidityChecked) Has(fd protoreflect.FieldDesc
 		return x.BlockHeight != uint64(0)
 	case "poktroll.proof.EventProofValidityChecked.proof_status":
 		return x.ProofStatus != 0
-	case "poktroll.proof.EventProofValidityChecked.reason":
-		return x.Reason != ""
+	case "poktroll.proof.EventProofValidityChecked.failure_reason":
+		return x.FailureReason != ""
 	default:
 		if fd.IsExtension() {
 			panic(fmt.Errorf("proto3 declared messages do not support extensions: poktroll.proof.EventProofValidityChecked"))
@@ -2955,8 +2955,8 @@ func (x *fastReflection_EventProofValidityChecked) Clear(fd protoreflect.FieldDe
 		x.BlockHeight = uint64(0)
 	case "poktroll.proof.EventProofValidityChecked.proof_status":
 		x.ProofStatus = 0
-	case "poktroll.proof.EventProofValidityChecked.reason":
-		x.Reason = ""
+	case "poktroll.proof.EventProofValidityChecked.failure_reason":
+		x.FailureReason = ""
 	default:
 		if fd.IsExtension() {
 			panic(fmt.Errorf("proto3 declared messages do not support extensions: poktroll.proof.EventProofValidityChecked"))
@@ -2982,8 +2982,8 @@ func (x *fastReflection_EventProofValidityChecked) Get(descriptor protoreflect.F
 	case "poktroll.proof.EventProofValidityChecked.proof_status":
 		value := x.ProofStatus
 		return protoreflect.ValueOfEnum((protoreflect.EnumNumber)(value))
-	case "poktroll.proof.EventProofValidityChecked.reason":
-		value := x.Reason
+	case "poktroll.proof.EventProofValidityChecked.failure_reason":
+		value := x.FailureReason
 		return protoreflect.ValueOfString(value)
 	default:
 		if descriptor.IsExtension() {
@@ -3011,8 +3011,8 @@ func (x *fastReflection_EventProofValidityChecked) Set(fd protoreflect.FieldDesc
 		x.BlockHeight = value.Uint()
 	case "poktroll.proof.EventProofValidityChecked.proof_status":
 		x.ProofStatus = (ClaimProofStatus)(value.Enum())
-	case "poktroll.proof.EventProofValidityChecked.reason":
-		x.Reason = value.Interface().(string)
+	case "poktroll.proof.EventProofValidityChecked.failure_reason":
+		x.FailureReason = value.Interface().(string)
 	default:
 		if fd.IsExtension() {
 			panic(fmt.Errorf("proto3 declared messages do not support extensions: poktroll.proof.EventProofValidityChecked"))
@@ -3042,8 +3042,8 @@ func (x *fastReflection_EventProofValidityChecked) Mutable(fd protoreflect.Field
 		panic(fmt.Errorf("field block_height of message poktroll.proof.EventProofValidityChecked is not mutable"))
 	case "poktroll.proof.EventProofValidityChecked.proof_status":
 		panic(fmt.Errorf("field proof_status of message poktroll.proof.EventProofValidityChecked is not mutable"))
-	case "poktroll.proof.EventProofValidityChecked.reason":
-		panic(fmt.Errorf("field reason of message poktroll.proof.EventProofValidityChecked is not mutable"))
+	case "poktroll.proof.EventProofValidityChecked.failure_reason":
+		panic(fmt.Errorf("field failure_reason of message poktroll.proof.EventProofValidityChecked is not mutable"))
 	default:
 		if fd.IsExtension() {
 			panic(fmt.Errorf("proto3 declared messages do not support extensions: poktroll.proof.EventProofValidityChecked"))
@@ -3064,7 +3064,7 @@ func (x *fastReflection_EventProofValidityChecked) NewField(fd protoreflect.Fiel
 		return protoreflect.ValueOfUint64(uint64(0))
 	case "poktroll.proof.EventProofValidityChecked.proof_status":
 		return protoreflect.ValueOfEnum(0)
-	case "poktroll.proof.EventProofValidityChecked.reason":
+	case "poktroll.proof.EventProofValidityChecked.failure_reason":
 		return protoreflect.ValueOfString("")
 	default:
 		if fd.IsExtension() {
@@ -3145,7 +3145,7 @@ func (x *fastReflection_EventProofValidityChecked) ProtoMethods() *protoiface.Me
 		if x.ProofStatus != 0 {
 			n += 1 + runtime.Sov(uint64(x.ProofStatus))
 		}
-		l = len(x.Reason)
+		l = len(x.FailureReason)
 		if l > 0 {
 			n += 1 + l + runtime.Sov(uint64(l))
 		}
@@ -3178,10 +3178,10 @@ func (x *fastReflection_EventProofValidityChecked) ProtoMethods() *protoiface.Me
 			i -= len(x.unknownFields)
 			copy(dAtA[i:], x.unknownFields)
 		}
-		if len(x.Reason) > 0 {
-			i -= len(x.Reason)
-			copy(dAtA[i:], x.Reason)
-			i = runtime.EncodeVarint(dAtA, i, uint64(len(x.Reason)))
+		if len(x.FailureReason) > 0 {
+			i -= len(x.FailureReason)
+			copy(dAtA[i:], x.FailureReason)
+			i = runtime.EncodeVarint(dAtA, i, uint64(len(x.FailureReason)))
 			i--
 			dAtA[i] = 0x22
 		}
@@ -3334,7 +3334,7 @@ func (x *fastReflection_EventProofValidityChecked) ProtoMethods() *protoiface.Me
 				}
 			case 4:
 				if wireType != 2 {
-					return protoiface.UnmarshalOutput{NoUnkeyedLiterals: input.NoUnkeyedLiterals, Flags: input.Flags}, fmt.Errorf("proto: wrong wireType = %d for field Reason", wireType)
+					return protoiface.UnmarshalOutput{NoUnkeyedLiterals: input.NoUnkeyedLiterals, Flags: input.Flags}, fmt.Errorf("proto: wrong wireType = %d for field FailureReason", wireType)
 				}
 				var stringLen uint64
 				for shift := uint(0); ; shift += 7 {
@@ -3362,7 +3362,7 @@ func (x *fastReflection_EventProofValidityChecked) ProtoMethods() *protoiface.Me
 				if postIndex > l {
 					return protoiface.UnmarshalOutput{NoUnkeyedLiterals: input.NoUnkeyedLiterals, Flags: input.Flags}, io.ErrUnexpectedEOF
 				}
-				x.Reason = string(dAtA[iNdEx:postIndex])
+				x.FailureReason = string(dAtA[iNdEx:postIndex])
 				iNdEx = postIndex
 			default:
 				iNdEx = preIndex
@@ -3710,7 +3710,7 @@ type EventProofValidityChecked struct {
 	ProofStatus ClaimProofStatus `protobuf:"varint,3,opt,name=proof_status,json=proofStatus,proto3,enum=poktroll.proof.ClaimProofStatus" json:"proof_status,omitempty"`
 	// reason is the string representation of the error that led to the proof being
 	// marked as invalid (e.g. "invalid closest merkle proof", "invalid relay request signature")
-	Reason string `protobuf:"bytes,4,opt,name=reason,proto3" json:"reason,omitempty"`
+	FailureReason string `protobuf:"bytes,4,opt,name=failure_reason,json=failureReason,proto3" json:"failure_reason,omitempty"`
 }
 
 func (x *EventProofValidityChecked) Reset() {
@@ -3754,9 +3754,9 @@ func (x *EventProofValidityChecked) GetProofStatus() ClaimProofStatus {
 	return ClaimProofStatus_PENDING_VALIDATION
 }
 
-func (x *EventProofValidityChecked) GetReason() string {
+func (x *EventProofValidityChecked) GetFailureReason() string {
 	if x != nil {
-		return x.Reason
+		return x.FailureReason
 	}
 	return ""
 }
@@ -3877,7 +3877,7 @@ var file_poktroll_proof_event_proto_rawDesc = []byte{
 	0x6f, 0x73, 0x6d, 0x6f, 0x73, 0x2e, 0x62, 0x61, 0x73, 0x65, 0x2e, 0x76, 0x31, 0x62, 0x65, 0x74,
 	0x61, 0x31, 0x2e, 0x43, 0x6f, 0x69, 0x6e, 0x42, 0x11, 0xea, 0xde, 0x1f, 0x0d, 0x63, 0x6c, 0x61,
 	0x69, 0x6d, 0x65, 0x64, 0x5f, 0x75, 0x70, 0x6f, 0x6b, 0x74, 0x52, 0x0c, 0x63, 0x6c, 0x61, 0x69,
-	0x6d, 0x65, 0x64, 0x55, 0x70, 0x6f, 0x6b, 0x74, 0x22, 0x83, 0x02, 0x0a, 0x19, 0x45, 0x76, 0x65,
+	0x6d, 0x65, 0x64, 0x55, 0x70, 0x6f, 0x6b, 0x74, 0x22, 0x9a, 0x02, 0x0a, 0x19, 0x45, 0x76, 0x65,
 	0x6e, 0x74, 0x50, 0x72, 0x6f, 0x6f, 0x66, 0x56, 0x61, 0x6c, 0x69, 0x64, 0x69, 0x74, 0x79, 0x43,
 	0x68, 0x65, 0x63, 0x6b, 0x65, 0x64, 0x12, 0x36, 0x0a, 0x05, 0x70, 0x72, 0x6f, 0x6f, 0x66, 0x18,
 	0x01, 0x20, 0x01, 0x28, 0x0b, 0x32, 0x15, 0x2e, 0x70, 0x6f, 0x6b, 0x74, 0x72, 0x6f, 0x6c, 0x6c,
@@ -3891,20 +3891,21 @@ var file_poktroll_proof_event_proto_rawDesc = []byte{
 	0x72, 0x6f, 0x6c, 0x6c, 0x2e, 0x70, 0x72, 0x6f, 0x6f, 0x66, 0x2e, 0x43, 0x6c, 0x61, 0x69, 0x6d,
 	0x50, 0x72, 0x6f, 0x6f, 0x66, 0x53, 0x74, 0x61, 0x74, 0x75, 0x73, 0x42, 0x10, 0xea, 0xde, 0x1f,
 	0x0c, 0x70, 0x72, 0x6f, 0x6f, 0x66, 0x5f, 0x73, 0x74, 0x61, 0x74, 0x75, 0x73, 0x52, 0x0b, 0x70,
-	0x72, 0x6f, 0x6f, 0x66, 0x53, 0x74, 0x61, 0x74, 0x75, 0x73, 0x12, 0x22, 0x0a, 0x06, 0x72, 0x65,
-	0x61, 0x73, 0x6f, 0x6e, 0x18, 0x04, 0x20, 0x01, 0x28, 0x09, 0x42, 0x0a, 0xea, 0xde, 0x1f, 0x06,
-	0x72, 0x65, 0x61, 0x73, 0x6f, 0x6e, 0x52, 0x06, 0x72, 0x65, 0x61, 0x73, 0x6f, 0x6e, 0x42, 0x9e,
-	0x01, 0xd8, 0xe2, 0x1e, 0x01, 0x0a, 0x12, 0x63, 0x6f, 0x6d, 0x2e, 0x70, 0x6f, 0x6b, 0x74, 0x72,
-	0x6f, 0x6c, 0x6c, 0x2e, 0x70, 0x72, 0x6f, 0x6f, 0x66, 0x42, 0x0a, 0x45, 0x76, 0x65, 0x6e, 0x74,
-	0x50, 0x72, 0x6f, 0x74, 0x6f, 0x50, 0x01, 0x5a, 0x1f, 0x63, 0x6f, 0x73, 0x6d, 0x6f, 0x73, 0x73,
-	0x64, 0x6b, 0x2e, 0x69, 0x6f, 0x2f, 0x61, 0x70, 0x69, 0x2f, 0x70, 0x6f, 0x6b, 0x74, 0x72, 0x6f,
-	0x6c, 0x6c, 0x2f, 0x70, 0x72, 0x6f, 0x6f, 0x66, 0xa2, 0x02, 0x03, 0x50, 0x50, 0x58, 0xaa, 0x02,
-	0x0e, 0x50, 0x6f, 0x6b, 0x74, 0x72, 0x6f, 0x6c, 0x6c, 0x2e, 0x50, 0x72, 0x6f, 0x6f, 0x66, 0xca,
-	0x02, 0x0e, 0x50, 0x6f, 0x6b, 0x74, 0x72, 0x6f, 0x6c, 0x6c, 0x5c, 0x50, 0x72, 0x6f, 0x6f, 0x66,
-	0xe2, 0x02, 0x1a, 0x50, 0x6f, 0x6b, 0x74, 0x72, 0x6f, 0x6c, 0x6c, 0x5c, 0x50, 0x72, 0x6f, 0x6f,
-	0x66, 0x5c, 0x47, 0x50, 0x42, 0x4d, 0x65, 0x74, 0x61, 0x64, 0x61, 0x74, 0x61, 0xea, 0x02, 0x0f,
-	0x50, 0x6f, 0x6b, 0x74, 0x72, 0x6f, 0x6c, 0x6c, 0x3a, 0x3a, 0x50, 0x72, 0x6f, 0x6f, 0x66, 0x62,
-	0x06, 0x70, 0x72, 0x6f, 0x74, 0x6f, 0x33,
+	0x72, 0x6f, 0x6f, 0x66, 0x53, 0x74, 0x61, 0x74, 0x75, 0x73, 0x12, 0x39, 0x0a, 0x0e, 0x66, 0x61,
+	0x69, 0x6c, 0x75, 0x72, 0x65, 0x5f, 0x72, 0x65, 0x61, 0x73, 0x6f, 0x6e, 0x18, 0x04, 0x20, 0x01,
+	0x28, 0x09, 0x42, 0x12, 0xea, 0xde, 0x1f, 0x0e, 0x66, 0x61, 0x69, 0x6c, 0x75, 0x72, 0x65, 0x5f,
+	0x72, 0x65, 0x61, 0x73, 0x6f, 0x6e, 0x52, 0x0d, 0x66, 0x61, 0x69, 0x6c, 0x75, 0x72, 0x65, 0x52,
+	0x65, 0x61, 0x73, 0x6f, 0x6e, 0x42, 0x9e, 0x01, 0xd8, 0xe2, 0x1e, 0x01, 0x0a, 0x12, 0x63, 0x6f,
+	0x6d, 0x2e, 0x70, 0x6f, 0x6b, 0x74, 0x72, 0x6f, 0x6c, 0x6c, 0x2e, 0x70, 0x72, 0x6f, 0x6f, 0x66,
+	0x42, 0x0a, 0x45, 0x76, 0x65, 0x6e, 0x74, 0x50, 0x72, 0x6f, 0x74, 0x6f, 0x50, 0x01, 0x5a, 0x1f,
+	0x63, 0x6f, 0x73, 0x6d, 0x6f, 0x73, 0x73, 0x64, 0x6b, 0x2e, 0x69, 0x6f, 0x2f, 0x61, 0x70, 0x69,
+	0x2f, 0x70, 0x6f, 0x6b, 0x74, 0x72, 0x6f, 0x6c, 0x6c, 0x2f, 0x70, 0x72, 0x6f, 0x6f, 0x66, 0xa2,
+	0x02, 0x03, 0x50, 0x50, 0x58, 0xaa, 0x02, 0x0e, 0x50, 0x6f, 0x6b, 0x74, 0x72, 0x6f, 0x6c, 0x6c,
+	0x2e, 0x50, 0x72, 0x6f, 0x6f, 0x66, 0xca, 0x02, 0x0e, 0x50, 0x6f, 0x6b, 0x74, 0x72, 0x6f, 0x6c,
+	0x6c, 0x5c, 0x50, 0x72, 0x6f, 0x6f, 0x66, 0xe2, 0x02, 0x1a, 0x50, 0x6f, 0x6b, 0x74, 0x72, 0x6f,
+	0x6c, 0x6c, 0x5c, 0x50, 0x72, 0x6f, 0x6f, 0x66, 0x5c, 0x47, 0x50, 0x42, 0x4d, 0x65, 0x74, 0x61,
+	0x64, 0x61, 0x74, 0x61, 0xea, 0x02, 0x0f, 0x50, 0x6f, 0x6b, 0x74, 0x72, 0x6f, 0x6c, 0x6c, 0x3a,
+	0x3a, 0x50, 0x72, 0x6f, 0x6f, 0x66, 0x62, 0x06, 0x70, 0x72, 0x6f, 0x74, 0x6f, 0x33,
 }
 
 var (
diff --git a/pkg/crypto/protocol/hasher.go b/pkg/crypto/protocol/hasher.go
index 918c576bf..db95bc6f7 100644
--- a/pkg/crypto/protocol/hasher.go
+++ b/pkg/crypto/protocol/hasher.go
@@ -1,6 +1,10 @@
 package protocol
 
-import "crypto/sha256"
+import (
+	"crypto/sha256"
+
+	"github.com/pokt-network/smt"
+)
 
 const (
 	RelayHasherSize      = sha256.Size
@@ -15,3 +19,7 @@ var (
 	NewRelayHasher = sha256.New
 	NewTrieHasher  = sha256.New
 )
+
+func SMTValueHasher() smt.TrieSpecOption {
+	return smt.WithValueHasher(nil)
+}
diff --git a/pkg/crypto/protocol/proof_path.go b/pkg/crypto/protocol/proof_path.go
index 1a48b40ee..1a3dce465 100644
--- a/pkg/crypto/protocol/proof_path.go
+++ b/pkg/crypto/protocol/proof_path.go
@@ -1,18 +1,13 @@
 package protocol
 
 import (
-	"crypto/sha256"
-
 	"github.com/pokt-network/smt"
 )
 
-// newHasher is the hash function used by the SMT specification.
-var newHasher = sha256.New
-
 // GetPathForProof computes the path to be used for proof validation by hashing
 // the block hash and session id.
 func GetPathForProof(blockHash []byte, sessionId string) []byte {
-	hasher := newHasher()
+	hasher := NewTrieHasher()
 	if _, err := hasher.Write(append(blockHash, []byte(sessionId)...)); err != nil {
 		panic(err)
 	}
@@ -20,13 +15,13 @@ func GetPathForProof(blockHash []byte, sessionId string) []byte {
 	return hasher.Sum(nil)
 }
 
-// NewSMTSpec returns the SMT specification used for the proof verification.
-// It uses a new hasher at every call to avoid concurrency issues that could be
-// caused by a shared hasher.
+// NewSMTSpec returns the SMT specification used for proof verification.
+// A new hasher is created for each call to prevent concurrency issues
+// from shared state.
 func NewSMTSpec() *smt.TrieSpec {
 	trieSpec := smt.NewTrieSpec(
-		newHasher(), true,
-		smt.WithValueHasher(nil),
+		NewTrieHasher(), true,
+		SMTValueHasher(),
 	)
 
 	return &trieSpec
diff --git a/pkg/relayer/session/sessiontree.go b/pkg/relayer/session/sessiontree.go
index 42269c973..a5a56137c 100644
--- a/pkg/relayer/session/sessiontree.go
+++ b/pkg/relayer/session/sessiontree.go
@@ -2,7 +2,6 @@ package session
 
 import (
 	"bytes"
-	"crypto/sha256"
 	"fmt"
 	"os"
 	"path/filepath"
@@ -94,7 +93,7 @@ func NewSessionTree(
 
 	// Create the SMST from the KVStore and a nil value hasher so the proof would
 	// contain a non-hashed Relay that could be used to validate the proof onchain.
-	trie := smt.NewSparseMerkleSumTrie(treeStore, protocol.NewTrieHasher(), smt.WithValueHasher(nil))
+	trie := smt.NewSparseMerkleSumTrie(treeStore, protocol.NewTrieHasher(), protocol.SMTValueHasher())
 
 	logger = logger.With(
 		"store_path", storePath,
@@ -175,7 +174,7 @@ func (st *sessionTree) ProveClosest(path []byte) (compactProof *smt.SparseCompac
 		return nil, err
 	}
 
-	sessionSMT := smt.ImportSparseMerkleSumTrie(st.treeStore, sha256.New(), st.claimedRoot, smt.WithValueHasher(nil))
+	sessionSMT := smt.ImportSparseMerkleSumTrie(st.treeStore, protocol.NewTrieHasher(), st.claimedRoot, protocol.SMTValueHasher())
 
 	// Generate the proof and cache it along with the path for which it was generated.
 	// There is no ProveClosest variant that generates a compact proof directly.
diff --git a/pkg/relayer/session/sessiontree_test.go b/pkg/relayer/session/sessiontree_test.go
index 762ebcb1b..c42e6d568 100644
--- a/pkg/relayer/session/sessiontree_test.go
+++ b/pkg/relayer/session/sessiontree_test.go
@@ -39,7 +39,7 @@ func TestSessionTree_CompactProofsAreSmallerThanNonCompactProofs(t *testing.T) {
 			kvStore, err := pebble.NewKVStore("")
 			require.NoError(t, err)
 
-			trie := smt.NewSparseMerkleSumTrie(kvStore, protocol.NewTrieHasher(), smt.WithValueHasher(nil))
+			trie := smt.NewSparseMerkleSumTrie(kvStore, protocol.NewTrieHasher(), protocol.SMTValueHasher())
 
 			// Insert numLeaf random leaves.
 			for i := 0; i < numLeafs; i++ {
diff --git a/proto/poktroll/proof/event.proto b/proto/poktroll/proof/event.proto
index 271a6c355..f14fbd8b5 100644
--- a/proto/poktroll/proof/event.proto
+++ b/proto/poktroll/proof/event.proto
@@ -52,5 +52,5 @@ message EventProofValidityChecked {
   poktroll.proof.ClaimProofStatus proof_status = 3 [(gogoproto.jsontag) = "proof_status"];
   // reason is the string representation of the error that led to the proof being
   // marked as invalid (e.g. "invalid closest merkle proof", "invalid relay request signature")
-  string reason = 4 [(gogoproto.jsontag) = "reason"];
+  string failure_reason = 4 [(gogoproto.jsontag) = "failure_reason"];
 }
diff --git a/tests/integration/service/relay_mining_difficulty_test.go b/tests/integration/service/relay_mining_difficulty_test.go
index 050b8328c..1a171e5c3 100644
--- a/tests/integration/service/relay_mining_difficulty_test.go
+++ b/tests/integration/service/relay_mining_difficulty_test.go
@@ -200,7 +200,7 @@ func prepareSMST(
 	// TODO_TECHDEBT(#446): Centralize the configuration for the SMT spec.
 	kvStore, err := pebble.NewKVStore("")
 	require.NoError(t, err)
-	trie := smt.NewSparseMerkleSumTrie(kvStore, protocol.NewTrieHasher(), smt.WithValueHasher(nil))
+	trie := smt.NewSparseMerkleSumTrie(kvStore, protocol.NewTrieHasher(), protocol.SMTValueHasher())
 
 	for i := uint64(0); i < numRelays; i++ {
 		// DEV_NOTE: A signed mined relay is a MinedRelay type with the appropriate
diff --git a/tests/integration/tokenomics/relay_mining_integration_test.go b/tests/integration/tokenomics/relay_mining_integration_test.go
index 3a9231c4a..f0d1dfa17 100644
--- a/tests/integration/tokenomics/relay_mining_integration_test.go
+++ b/tests/integration/tokenomics/relay_mining_integration_test.go
@@ -214,7 +214,7 @@ func prepareRealClaim(
 	require.NoError(t, err)
 
 	// Prepare an SMST
-	trie := smt.NewSparseMerkleSumTrie(kvStore, protocol.NewTrieHasher(), smt.WithValueHasher(nil))
+	trie := smt.NewSparseMerkleSumTrie(kvStore, protocol.NewTrieHasher(), protocol.SMTValueHasher())
 
 	// Insert the mined relays into the SMST
 	for i := uint64(0); i < numRelays; i++ {
diff --git a/x/proof/keeper/validate_proofs.go b/x/proof/keeper/validate_proofs.go
index 0e085aafe..b6627aeb3 100644
--- a/x/proof/keeper/validate_proofs.go
+++ b/x/proof/keeper/validate_proofs.go
@@ -151,14 +151,14 @@ func (k Keeper) validateProof(
 	// Set the proof status to valid by default.
 	proofStatus := types.ClaimProofStatus_VALIDATED
 	// Set the invalidity reason to an empty string by default.
-	invalidProofCause := ""
+	invalidProofReason := ""
 
 	if err := k.EnsureValidProofSignaturesAndClosestPath(ctx, &claim, &proof); err != nil {
 		// Set the proof status to invalid.
 		proofStatus = types.ClaimProofStatus_INVALID
 
 		// Set the invalidity reason to the error message.
-		invalidProofCause = err.Error()
+		invalidProofReason = err.Error()
 
 		logger.Info(fmt.Sprintf("invalid proof due to error: %v", err))
 	}
@@ -166,10 +166,10 @@ func (k Keeper) validateProof(
 
 	// Create and emit an event for the proof validation result.
 	eventProofValidityChecked := types.EventProofValidityChecked{
-		Proof:       &proof,
-		BlockHeight: uint64(sdkCtx.BlockHeight()),
-		ProofStatus: proofStatus,
-		Reason:      invalidProofCause,
+		Proof:         &proof,
+		BlockHeight:   uint64(sdkCtx.BlockHeight()),
+		ProofStatus:   proofStatus,
+		FailureReason: invalidProofReason,
 	}
 
 	if err := sdkCtx.EventManager().EmitTypedEvent(&eventProofValidityChecked); err != nil {
diff --git a/x/proof/types/event.pb.go b/x/proof/types/event.pb.go
index 45873d3b6..3d0e25004 100644
--- a/x/proof/types/event.pb.go
+++ b/x/proof/types/event.pb.go
@@ -338,7 +338,7 @@ type EventProofValidityChecked struct {
 	ProofStatus ClaimProofStatus `protobuf:"varint,3,opt,name=proof_status,json=proofStatus,proto3,enum=poktroll.proof.ClaimProofStatus" json:"proof_status"`
 	// reason is the string representation of the error that led to the proof being
 	// marked as invalid (e.g. "invalid closest merkle proof", "invalid relay request signature")
-	Reason string `protobuf:"bytes,4,opt,name=reason,proto3" json:"reason"`
+	FailureReason string `protobuf:"bytes,4,opt,name=failure_reason,json=failureReason,proto3" json:"failure_reason"`
 }
 
 func (m *EventProofValidityChecked) Reset()         { *m = EventProofValidityChecked{} }
@@ -391,9 +391,9 @@ func (m *EventProofValidityChecked) GetProofStatus() ClaimProofStatus {
 	return ClaimProofStatus_PENDING_VALIDATION
 }
 
-func (m *EventProofValidityChecked) GetReason() string {
+func (m *EventProofValidityChecked) GetFailureReason() string {
 	if m != nil {
-		return m.Reason
+		return m.FailureReason
 	}
 	return ""
 }
@@ -409,42 +409,43 @@ func init() {
 func init() { proto.RegisterFile("poktroll/proof/event.proto", fileDescriptor_dd4c19e04487fbec) }
 
 var fileDescriptor_dd4c19e04487fbec = []byte{
-	// 551 bytes of a gzipped FileDescriptorProto
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-	0x6f, 0xcf, 0x81, 0x74, 0x08, 0x00, 0x00,
+	// 562 bytes of a gzipped FileDescriptorProto
+	0x1f, 0x8b, 0x08, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x02, 0xff, 0xec, 0x96, 0xb1, 0x6f, 0xd3, 0x4e,
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+	0x00, 0x00,
 }
 
 func (m *EventClaimCreated) Marshal() (dAtA []byte, err error) {
@@ -739,10 +740,10 @@ func (m *EventProofValidityChecked) MarshalToSizedBuffer(dAtA []byte) (int, erro
 	_ = i
 	var l int
 	_ = l
-	if len(m.Reason) > 0 {
-		i -= len(m.Reason)
-		copy(dAtA[i:], m.Reason)
-		i = encodeVarintEvent(dAtA, i, uint64(len(m.Reason)))
+	if len(m.FailureReason) > 0 {
+		i -= len(m.FailureReason)
+		copy(dAtA[i:], m.FailureReason)
+		i = encodeVarintEvent(dAtA, i, uint64(len(m.FailureReason)))
 		i--
 		dAtA[i] = 0x22
 	}
@@ -910,7 +911,7 @@ func (m *EventProofValidityChecked) Size() (n int) {
 	if m.ProofStatus != 0 {
 		n += 1 + sovEvent(uint64(m.ProofStatus))
 	}
-	l = len(m.Reason)
+	l = len(m.FailureReason)
 	if l > 0 {
 		n += 1 + l + sovEvent(uint64(l))
 	}
@@ -1816,7 +1817,7 @@ func (m *EventProofValidityChecked) Unmarshal(dAtA []byte) error {
 			}
 		case 4:
 			if wireType != 2 {
-				return fmt.Errorf("proto: wrong wireType = %d for field Reason", wireType)
+				return fmt.Errorf("proto: wrong wireType = %d for field FailureReason", wireType)
 			}
 			var stringLen uint64
 			for shift := uint(0); ; shift += 7 {
@@ -1844,7 +1845,7 @@ func (m *EventProofValidityChecked) Unmarshal(dAtA []byte) error {
 			if postIndex > l {
 				return io.ErrUnexpectedEOF
 			}
-			m.Reason = string(dAtA[iNdEx:postIndex])
+			m.FailureReason = string(dAtA[iNdEx:postIndex])
 			iNdEx = postIndex
 		default:
 			iNdEx = preIndex