Art law

US campaign group sues Smithsonian over return of Benin Bronzes to Nigeria

Restitution Study Group have lost their first legal battle but insist the case is still pending

New York court dismisses restitution case brought against the Israel Museum

A Holocaust restitution case over the Bird’s Head Haggadah, the oldest manuscript of its kind, has been dismissed by the New York Supreme Court on behalf of the Israel Museum

Banksy calls out fashion brand Guess for using Flower Thrower image in London store display

The artist did not hold back in an Instagram post accusing the brand of illegal use of his artwork at a London store and encouraging his followers to shoplift from it

US laws meant to stop sex trafficking are making it difficult for artists to promote and sell their art online

A set of ambiguous laws has pushed platforms to refuse service to artists whose work includes nude imagery or could be construed as sexual

NFTnews

Hilma af Klint’s family criticises the NFT sale of the artist’s sacred paintings

The Swedish artist's family say the digital drop contradicts the artist’s will and goes against her artistic intentions

The five year warranty on the Salvator Mundi by Leonardo is about to run out—could the buyer have asked for their money back?

Warranties of authenticity offered to buyers can be hard to enforce when auctioneers can fall back on the “generally accepted opinion of scholars and experts”

US Supreme Court hears oral arguments in Andy Warhol copyright infringement case

In oral arguments, lawyers for the foundation and photographer Lynn Goldsmith debated the boundaries of licensing, fair use and reinterpretation in Warhol’s prints of musician Prince

Battle lines drawn as Andy Warhol copyright case goes to US Supreme Court

Long-running case centres on a 1980s photograph of pop star Prince by Lynn Goldsmith, which later formed the basis of a series of prints by Andy Warhol

Paris court dismisses bribery charges brought against Marlborough Gallery, French curator and artist’s family

The charges, brought ten years ago by a rival gallerist, revolved around allegations that a curator at France’s national museum of Asian art had received favours in exchange for organising a Chu Teh-Chun exhibition

Judge sides with immersive art company Meow Wolf in artist’s copyright infringement lawsuit

Artist Lauren Oliver, who created the popular “Space Owl” sculpture and an accompanying climate change-themed installation at the company’s New Mexico complex, had sued Meow Wolf for more than $1m

US court dismisses Nazi-era Guelph Treasure restitution claim

The heirs of Jewish dealers, who allegedly sold the medieval collection to the Prussian government under duress due to Nazi persecution, may appeal the ruling

New York Attorney General's investigation into Sotheby's alleged tax fraud widens

Letitia James's office is seeking information on more than 50 collectors related to a 2020 lawsuit against the auction house

Battle over Henry Darger’s legacy escalates as artist’s estate sues landlords who saved his work

Representatives of the artist’s estate are suing Darger’s longtime landlords, who brought his work to light after his death, for copyright infringement

After the Kardashian-Marilyn Monroe dress controversy, we ask: what rights do artists have over the future care of their work?

Images of the famous dress allegedly damaged by Kim Kardashian at the Met Gala have prompted fresh questions about the safeguarding of art and precious objects

Lawcomment

The UK has updated its Anti-Money Laundering Guidance—here's what it means for the art market

Clarifications simplify who falls into the "regulated art sector" and who should be doing "Know Your Customer" or "KYC" checks on whom

Artists fail to win lawsuit over erased murals at San Francisco queer bar

The property owner has been cleared of whitewashing LGBTQ art works at the Stud Bar

Photographer's abandoned Prince book at the root of a years-long legal dispute

Allen Beaulieu, who worked as Prince’s photographer during the musician’s formative years, wanted to produce a book of his best work from the era, but claims his collaborators had other plans

Paris court rejects wax sculptor’s claim he is the true creator of eight Maurizio Cattelan works

Daniel Druet, who created hyperrealist likenesses of Pope John Paul II, Hitler and others for Cattelan, was seeking €6m in compensation and to be declared the works’ “sole author”

‘No mere monkey business’: creators of Bored Apes NFTs sue artist Ryder Ripps for trademark infringement

The artist defended his series as “a protest against and parody of” the prized monkey illustrations

Documenta 15: why is the show so scandalous?

Plus, the Warhol-Prince copyright dispute, and Juan Muñoz at Spain’s Centro Botin

Hosted by Ben Luke. With guest speakers Kabir Jhala and Jane Morris. Produced by David. Clack, Aimee Dawson and Henrietta Bentall
Sponsored byChristie's

Su-suit-io: Alamo experts sue authors of a book suggesting they sold phoney artefacts from the battle to British pop star Phil Collins

The authors of the book imply that antiquities dealer Alexander McDuffie and historian Joseph Musso faked inscriptions and fraudulently authenticated artefacts that were set for a revamped Alamo site

Midwestern man charged for illegally excavating Indigenous artefacts

The man and others excavated a densely concentrated archaeological site in the Harry S. Truman State Park in Missouri

UK’s revenue and customs agency begins handing out fines to art market players

HMRC is penalising art world "participants" that have failed to register under the new anti-money laundering legislations

Peter Max saga continues, as his daughter struggles to gain guardianship of the dementia-stricken Pop artist

The artist has been the subject of legal complaints for years regarding both his business and personal care

Collector files lawsuit to prove ownership of $7m Picasso after attempted sale goes south

The prospective buyer failed to give anything beyond the down payment, the suit alleges, while at the holding warehouse, a string of suspicious custodial transfers began

Antiquities trafficking case escalates as Louvre Abu Dhabi joins civil action and Swiss collector files criminal complaint

In wake of scandal involving former Louvre director, France's culture minister forms taskforce to assess acquisitions procedures at museums

NFTnews

NFTs ruled as digital assets after Singapore court freezes blockchain sale of Bored Ape

Collector has won a court injunction to stop the sale of an NFT that was used as collateral against a loan

Art lawcomment

The stakes of a copyright case being heard by the US Supreme Court go way beyond Andy Warhol

A forthcoming Supreme Court hearing in a case relating to a Warhol work that used a photographer’s portrait has potentially huge implications for copyright claims

New York City removes rules governing auction houses in bid to stimulate business

But firms say they will continue to operate policies and practices that promote transparency