Lawsuits

Technologycomment

Can artists protect their work by suing AI companies?

When it comes to copyright infringement, establishing culpability and illegality in the age of artificial intelligence is murky

Curator Virginia Brilliant settles her lawsuit against Robilant + Voena gallery and its co-founders

Brilliant, who had sought at least $3m for claims related to her consulting work for the gallery, has withdrawn her complaint as part of the agreement

Three months after shutting down, Philadelphia’s University of the Arts files for bankruptcy

The university’s leaders still face a host of legal disputes, but the filing may allow them to liquidate real estate holdings that have been valued at $87m

Former university museum director drops lawsuit seeking to block sale of works to fund dormitory repairs

The deaccessioning dispute at Valparaiso University’s Brauer Museum of Art centres on works by Georgia O’Keeffe, Frederic Church and Childe Hassam collectively valued at up to $15m

Holocaust-restitution firm Mondex settles legal feud with heir over fees for $24m Chagall painting

"Over Vitebsk" by Marc Chagall hung at the Museum of Modern Art for decades until 2020, when it was restituted to the the heirs of a Jewish-owned art gallery in 1930s Berlin

US artists score victory in landmark AI copyright case

A federal judge in California has blocked an attempt by several AI companies to have portions of a copyright case dismissed

Man who claims he was injured in 'sprinkle pit' sues Museum of Ice Cream

A father who sustained a fracture during a visit to the immersive attraction in Manhattan in 2023 is suing the company for unspecified damages

Judge orders owner of mysterious African art collection in Houston to hand over works worth nearly $1m to settle legal dispute

The unusual move halted a court-ordered auction of around 1,400 objects for the second time in four months

Crime news

US authorities charge three UK nationals in Evolved Apes NFT fraud scheme

The charges, brought by the office of the Attorney for the Southern District of New York, signal a commitment to pursuing wide-ranging cryptocurrency cases

Artist who created Queen Elizabeth II portrait on Canadian coins sues dealer over stolen and damaged works

Susanna Blunt alleges the dealer Benjamin Lumb promised to compensate her for a stolen piece and knocked over several works in a “domino effect”

Feud between Frankenthaler Foundation’s current and former leaders drags on

A former board member wrote to the office of New York Attorney General Letitia James about the legal dispute, though no investigation is currently planned

Curator files explosive lawsuit against Robilant + Voena gallery alleging toxic workplace and other violations

Virginia Brilliant accuses the dealers of "repeatedly, regularly and constantly making misogynistic, antisemitic, racist and homophobic comments" and more

US judge rejects Nazi-loot claim to Van Gogh Sunflowers painting owned by Japanese company

After almost two years, the case has been dismissed due to a lack of jurisdiction, so the work will remain at the Sompo Museum of Art in Tokyo

Christie's hit with class action lawsuit over exposure of clients' personal data in cyberattack

The complaint, filed on 3 June by a Dallas-based customer, is the latest problem for the auction house following a major cyberattack

MFA Houston can keep Bernardo Bellotto painting sold to the Nazis, appeals court rules

The lawsuit stems from the accidental restitution of the wrong painting in the immediate aftermath of the Second World War

Collector Ron Perelman sold $963m worth of art to pay off debt

Recently unsealed court filings show 71 works by artists like Basquiat, Twombly and Giacometti were unloaded over a two-year period

Woman sues Walker Art Center after being told she could not breastfeed in a gallery

It appears the museum’s own employees were unaware of the policy that “parents are free to nurse children wherever”

Native American curator sues Chicago Blackhawks professional hockey team for fraud, sexual harassment

Nina Sanders claims she was hired as a consultant for the team to “pacify resistance” to the Chicago Blackhawks’ use of a Native American name and imagery

Vatican Museums staff bring legal action over ‘unfair and poor’ working conditions

Nearly 50 workers have signed a petition raising doubts over safety in what is the first ever class action against the Vatican

Dispute over a potentially Nazi-looted Egon Schiele goes to trial in New York

Heirs of multiple Holocaust victims have made claims to the drawing, which a member of the Lehman Brothers banking dynasty bought as a gift for his son

DeviantArt and Midjourney deny wrongdoing in copyright infringement lawsuit over in AI image generators

Two giants of the image generation industry rejected copyright infringement claims from artists who allege their work was used to train an AI tool

US federal judge halts demolition of Land art environment

A temporary restraining order against the Des Moines Art Center after artist Mary Miss sued to block the dismantling of her outdoor work

Artist Mary Miss sues US art centre to block demolition of her Land art environment

Municipal officials recently approved the Des Moines Art Center’s plans to demolish “Greenwood Pond: Double Site”

Post-war art titan Marlborough Gallery to close after 80 years in business

The firm is winding down its operations globally and will sell off an estimated $250m of art

New York museum's former chief financial officer claims in lawsuit she was fired for raising concerns about director’s expenses

Denise Lewis claims she was fired “without cause or warning” after she complained about the Museum of Arts and Design's director's alleged use of the institution’s funds for personal expenses during a vacation in Mexico

Warhol Foundation to pay photographer $21,000 as dispute over Prince portraits ends

The case had gone all the way to the US Supreme Court, which last spring ruled in favour of the photographer Lynn Goldsmith

Frida Kahlo Corporation files trademark suit against Amazon sellers

The company that owns the anti-capitalist artist's image is embroiled in yet another legal tussle over representation

Paris court finds billionaire dealer Guy Wildenstein guilty of tax fraud

He has received a four year prison sentence and been fined €1m for concealing from authorities a massive art collection to avoid paying inheritance tax

New filing in Frankenthaler Foundation lawsuit alleges 'pay-to-play' scheme

Frankenthaler's nephew has accused the foundation, which terminated his board position last spring, of "extensive self-dealing"