Art Law Day at the Appraisers Association of America’s annual conference is now less than a month away. Held at the NYU Kimmel Center, this year’s event will be held on Friday November 7, 2014. Sullivan & Worcester LLP is excited to be a Friend of Art Law Day this year. The scheduled that was… Continue Reading
Category Archives: Legislation
Subscribe to Legislation RSS FeedNew Sullivan & Worcester LLP Advisory on Fine Arts Consignment
Posted in Consignment, LegislationSullivan & Worcester LLP’s Art and Museum Law Group has published an important new client advisory about Massachusetts’s fine arts consignment statute, G.L. c. 104A. With the recent decision in Plumb v. Casey et al. by the Supreme Judicial Court, it is more important than ever to understand what the law requires and provides. Certainly… Continue Reading
Have Some Foie Gras with Your Ethanol: Auction Houses Urge Ninth Circuit Not to Rehear California Resale Royalties Act Argument
Posted in Copyright, Legislation, Moral Rights, Resale RoyaltiesThe defendants in the case on appeal over the constitutionality of California’s Resale Royalty Act have just briefed the court’s question about whether the full court should rehear the case. Responding to an order that the parties explain whether the case conflicts with recent Ninth Circuit precedent, Christie’s, Sotheby’s, and eBay all argued emphatically that no… Continue Reading
Books of Note: “The Art Collecting Legal Handbook” Reviewed
Posted in Art Fairs, Auctions, Immunity from Seizure Act, Legislation, Litigation, Moral Rights, Museums, Publications, Restitution, World War IIIn the course of our work here, I like to call out books and articles that I feel are worthy of praise, usually the in the course of a particular post or issue. After a too-long stay on the corner of my desk awaiting time to read it, I finally finished a book published last… Continue Reading
Massachusetts High Court Clarifies: Written Agreement Not Required to Create Consignment of Fine Art and its Resulting Trust Duties
Posted in Bankruptcy, Consignment, LegislationThe Supreme Judicial Court, the high court of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, has answered a certified question from the Bankruptcy Court about the interpretation of Massachusetts’s fine art consignment law, G.L. c. 104A. The case, Eve Plumb et al. v. Debra Casey, SJC-11519, originated with an art dealer’s bankruptcy and the claim by the trustee in that bankruptcy… Continue Reading
Legislative Update: HR 4103, the “American Royalties Too Act” to be Considered Next Week, Gains Sponsors
Posted in Copyright, Legislation, Resale RoyaltiesOn February 26, 2014, Representative Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) introduced the “American Royalties Too Act”—House Resolution 4103. HR 4103 was referred to the House Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet on March 20, 2014. There was also an “American Royalties Too Act” introduced in the U.S. Senate by Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) on the… Continue Reading
Reactions to Jenack Decision Are Surprisingly Limited So Far
Posted in Auctions, LegislationSince the Court of Appeals’ decision in William J. Jenack Estate Appraisers and Auctioneers, Inc. v. Albert Rabizadeh was released on Tuesday (a decision that the New York Times noted was “first reported by the Art Law Report blog”), reactions have started to come in to the decision. Somewhat surprisingly, they have thus far been… Continue Reading
Jenack v. Rabidazeh Decision Reversed: Auction Sellers and Consignors Can Remain Anonymous
Posted in Auctions, LegislationThe New York Court of Appeals reversed this morning the decision in Jenack v. Rabidazeh last fall by the Appellate Division of the New York Supreme Court that had held that an auctioneer must disclose the name of the actual owner who has consigned the work, to enforce that sale consistent with the state’s Statute of… Continue Reading
The Auctioneer is the Agent of the Seller in Every Auction: Buyer Gets the Better of Argument in Jenack Appeal Oral Argument. Are Auction Houses Ready if Result Stands?
Posted in Auctions, LegislationThe New York Court of Appeals held oral argument last week in the appeal from the Appellate Division of the New York Supreme Court’s ruling in Jenack v. Rabizadeh that an auctioneer must disclose the name of any owner who has consigned the work for sale, or a sale against a successful bidder cannot… Continue Reading
Proposed Legislation in New York Would Help Shield Authentication Experts from Liability
Posted in Appraisal, Authentication, Knoedler, LegislationAt Friday’s Art Law Day at the annual meeting of the Appraisers Association of America, Judith Bresler gave the keynote address on the topic of the complications created by prosective liability for authentication experts. As prominent cases ranging from the Knoedler forgeries to the decision by the Warhol Foundation and others to cease authenticating works… Continue Reading
Detroit Institute of Arts Deaccessioning: Municipal Bankruptcy, Existing and Proposed Changes to Michigan Law Affect Debate
Posted in Bankruptcy, Collections, Deaccession, Legislation, MuseumsAn important qualifier to the discussion about deaccessioning and the Detroit Institute of Arts is that although DIA is a subdivision of the bankruptcy debtor (Detroit), that debtor is not any old commercial entity. Rather, Detroit is a municipality, and municipal and state debtors are governed by slightly different rules than private parties. The underlying… Continue Reading
Jenack Case Set for Oral Argument, Appeal Tests Obligation for Auction Houses in New York to Disclose Seller’s Name
Posted in Auctions, Consignment, Legislation, UncategorizedThe New York Court of Appeals has set a hearing date on the appeal of the William J. Jenack action house of the Appellate Division’s ruling last year that an auctioneer must disclose the name of any owner who has consigned the work for sale, or a sale against a successful bidder cannot be enforced… Continue Reading
Bi-Partisan Sponsors for Senate Bill 2212 Sign On
Posted in Foreign Cultural Exchange Jurisdictional Immunity Clarification Act, Foreign Sovereign Immunities, Legislation, Restitution, Senate Bill 2212Bi-partisan momentum appears to be gathering for Senate Bill 2212, the Foreign Cultural Exchange Jurisdictional Immunity Clarification Act (a bill that would clarify an exception to the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act in respect to the loan of cultural artifacts). After Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY) signed on as a co-sponsor on November 27, 2012, others have followed. In… Continue Reading
Charles Schumer’s Co-Sponsorship of Senate Bill 2212 Could Signal Movement
Posted in Foreign Cultural Exchange Jurisdictional Immunity Clarification Act, Foreign Sovereign Immunities, Legislation, Senate Bill 2212The federal register this week noted the addition on November 27, 2012 of Charles Schumer, New York’s senior Senator, as a co-sponsor of Senate Bill 2212, the Foreign Cultural Exchange Jurisdictional Immunity Clarification Act, the proposed amendment to the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act that would exempt from the FSIA the loan of certain cultural objects… Continue Reading
5th Annual Art Litigation and Dispute Resolution Practice Institute November 16, 2012
Posted in Events, Legislation, RestitutionI’ll be winging my way to Houston, but otherwise I would be at the New York County Lawyers’ Association’s 5th Annual Art Litigation and Dispute Resolution Practice Institute event on Friday, November 16, 2012. Anyone interested should not miss it. The agenda will be as follows: Panel 1: The Law and Business of Sculpture and… Continue Reading
Auction Consignors’ Names Must be Disclosed in New York: an Art Twist on a Very Old Law
Posted in Collections, Consignment, LegislationIt is a busy fall for consignment law in New York. News has been making the rounds this month about a decision by the Appellate Division of the New York Supreme Court, New York’s intermediate appeals court. The Appellate Division ruled that an auctioneer must disclose the name of any owner who has consigned the work… Continue Reading
Change to New York Art Consignment Statute Adds Protections, Risks
Posted in Collections, Consignment, Legislation, TrustsNew York has passed an amendment to its Arts & Cultural Affairs law, N.Y. Arts & Cult. Aff. Law §12.01(2012), that is important for artist, galleries, and dealers alike. It affects the consignment relationship and creates critical new duties—and liabilities, for the dealer on consignment. Most importantly, it makes using any form of agreement drafted… Continue Reading
The Other Von Saher Shoe Drops: Cassirer v. Kingdom of Spain Dismissed Under Foreign Affairs Preemption
Posted in Foreign Sovereign Immunities, Legislation, Preemption, Restitution, World War IIAn emerging new defense to wartime art restitution claims has claimed another case. Although still confined to one district in California, the trend of dismissing such claims as better suited to resolution through the foreign affairs operations of the federal government simply cannot be ignored; wartime claims already struggling to overcome statutes of limitations could… Continue Reading
Cultural Exchange Jurisdictional Amendment Coverage Continues to Miss the Mark: NPR Report Claims Bill Could “Thwart Return of Holocaust Art”
Posted in Foreign Cultural Exchange Jurisdictional Immunity Clarification Act, Foreign Sovereign Immunities, Immunity from Seizure Act, Legislation, Restitution, Senate Bill 2212, Uncategorized, World War IIIs it time to invoke the Corollary to Godwin’s Law of Nazi Analogies (i.e., as a discussion grows longer, the probability of a comparison involving Nazis or Hitler increases, and once this occurs, that thread is over, and whoever mentioned the Nazis has automatically the argument ) concerning Senate Bill 2212, the Foreign Cultural Exchange Jurisdictional… Continue Reading
Despite Criticism of S.B. 2212’s Proposed Amendment to the FSIA, New Law Would Not Enable Stolen Art
Posted in Collections, Foreign Cultural Exchange Jurisdictional Immunity Clarification Act, Foreign Sovereign Immunities, Immunity from Seizure Act, Legislation, Restitution, World War IIDoreen Carvajal of the New York Times this week addressed Senate Bill 2212, (the “Foreign Cultural Exchange Jurisdictional Immunity Clarification Act”) this week, a bill approved in March by the House of Representatives. The article gives those most critical of the bill a chance to make their case. While well-intentioned, that criticism continues to miss… Continue Reading
California Law Struck Down as Unconstitutional: U.S. District Court Dismisses California Resale Royalty Act Case against Sotheby’s, Christie’s, and eBay
Posted in Collections, Copyright, Intellectual Property, Legislation, Resale RoyaltiesConsistent with expectations after reports from the court hearing in March, the U.S. District Court in Los Angeles dismissed the case brought by artist Chuck Close and others that alleged violations of the California Resale Royalty Act (the “CRRA”) by Sotheby’s, Christie’s and eBay, and ruled that the CRRA is unconstitutional in its entirety. Similar claims… Continue Reading
Foreign Cultural Exchange Jurisdictional Immunity Clarification Act: House Votes to Amend FSIA to Exclude Artwork Loan as Basis for Jurisdiction
Posted in Foreign Cultural Exchange Jurisdictional Immunity Clarification Act, Foreign Sovereign Immunities, Legislation, Restitution, Senate Bill 2212, World War IIThe House of Representatives approved the Foreign Cultural Exchange Jurisdictional Immunity Clarification Act on March 19, 2012, to remove the display of a work of art in the United States as basis to sue a foreign sovereign here. The law touches on important distinctions between immunity from suit—when a party cannot be sued at all—from… Continue Reading
California Resale Royalty Act Case Against Sotheby’s, Christie’s, and eBay to Be Dismissed?
Posted in Collections, Legislation, Resale RoyaltiesDonn Zaretsky at the Art Law Blog (whose prior commentary on the case gives excellent analysis of the Commerce Clause and other issues) reports that the U.S. District Court issued a tentative ruling at a hearing on Monday to dismiss the California Resale Royalty Act cases against Sotheby’s, Christie’s and eBay (Chuck Close is one of… Continue Reading
Federal Legislation Proposed for Artists’ Resale Royalties
Posted in Legislation, Resale RoyaltiesIn place of rumored legislative efforts last summer, legislation has been formally introduced to codify under U.S. federal law droite de suite rights of resale for artists, under certain circumstances. Apart from California—whose California Resale Royalty Act has been in the news recently for lawsuits against Christie’s, Sotheby’s and eBay—the United States generally affords artists… Continue Reading
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