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Tag Archives: 19 U.S.C. § 1595a

St. Louis Art Museum Dismisses Its Lawsuit Over Mask of Ka-Nefer-Nefer, Could Bring it Again if It Chose

By Nicholas O'Donnell on Posted in Civil Forfeiture, Customs

I wondered aloud two weeks ago what the St. Louis Art Museum would do with its declaratory judgment action over the Mask of Ka-Nefer-Nefer after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 8th  Circuit affirmed the dismissal of the related forfeiture action brought by the government.  With the question of seizure answered for good, I… Continue Reading

What Happens to St. Louis Art Museum Suit Against the U.S. over the Mask of Ka Nefer Nefer—Will Museum Dismiss its Case Voluntarily?

By Nicholas O'Donnell on Posted in Civil Forfeiture, Customs

On the heels of the St. Louis Art Museum’s victory against the civil forfeiture action over the Mask of Ka-Nefer-Nefer, the question arises what the museum will do with the lawsuit it filed in 2011 concerning the mask.  That lawsuit, The Art Museum Subdistrict of the Metropolitan Zoological Park and Museum District of the City… Continue Reading

Appeals Court Rules Mask of Ka-Nefer-Nefer Will Stay at St. Louis Art Museum Because Government Missed Deadlines

By Nicholas O'Donnell on Posted in Antiquities, Customs, Restitution

 The Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit  of the U.S. government’s attempt to seize the Mask of Ka-Nefer-Nefer from the St. Louis Art Museum.  Despite the government’s persistent characterization the mask as stolen before it entered the country, the civil forfeiture case has been rebuffed.  The narrow issue was whether the trial court had… Continue Reading

Foreign Cultural Exchange Jurisdictional Immunity Clarification Act Reintroduced in House of Representatives, Would Ban Use of Exhibition Loan as Basis for Federal Court Jurisdiction

By Nicholas O'Donnell on Posted in Foreign Cultural Exchange Jurisdictional Immunity Clarification Act, Foreign Sovereign Immunities, Gurlitt Collection, Immunity from Seizure Act, Restitution, Senate Bill 2212, World War II

Steve Chabot (R-OH) has reintroduced the Foreign Cultural Exchange Jurisdictional Immunity Clarification Act  (H.R. 4292), after a previous attempt to amend the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act with regard to the loan of cultural objects failed to become law in 2012.  The text of the March 25, 2014 bill is identical to the version that passed… Continue Reading

Government Tries to Save “Mask of Ka-Nefer-Nefer” Case Against St. Louis Art Museum, but Did U.S. Miss Its Own Deadline?

By Nicholas O'Donnell on Posted in Civil Forfeiture, Collections, Customs, Restitution

After the U.S. District Court denied the government’s Motion to Reconsider its earlier dismissal of the claim to the Mask of Ka-Nefer-Nefer in the St. Louis Museum of Art, the government has tried another procedure to revive the case, one that is normally unremarkable.  A review of the filings in the case raises the question, however,… Continue Reading

Commentary Takes Shape on S.B. 2212, the Foreign Cultural Exchange Jurisdictional Immunity Clarification Act

By Nicholas O'Donnell on Posted in Collections, Customs, Foreign Cultural Exchange Jurisdictional Immunity Clarification Act, Foreign Sovereign Immunities, Restitution, Senate Bill 2212, Uncategorized, World War II

It’s been a few weeks since the House passed the Foreign Cultural Exchange Jurisdictional Immunity Clarification Act (H.R. 4086) and sent it on to the Senate for consideration as S.B. 2212.  It has bipartisan sponsorship there (Dianne Feinstein and Orrin Hatch), but no word yet on when it will be put to a vote. As… Continue Reading