The US Supreme Court delivered a blow to the campaign for resale royalties in California last month when it rejected an appeal by artists against the auction firms Christie’s, Sotheby’s and eBay. The court refused to hear the case, brought by Chuck Close, Laddie John Dill and the estates of Sam Francis and Robert Graham, which challenged last year’s decision to allow out-of-state dealers to conduct sales without giving artists the royalties required in California (5% of proceeds on the resale of works costing more than $1,000).
