Law Russian Billionaire Dmitry Rybolovlev’s Secret Backing of Some of Hollywood’s Biggest Movies Has Been Revealed in a High-Stakes Lawsuit A firm Rybolovlev silently backed is behind blockbusters such as 'Top Gun: Maverick' and 'Mission: Impossible 7.' By Eileen Kinsella, Jan 5, 2023
Law Italian Police Confiscated a $4.2 Million Rubens Painting From a Genoa Exhibition as Part of a Fraud Investigation A decade ago, the owners illegally exported the piece and staged fake sales abroad to boost its value, according to the Carabinieri. By Taylor Dafoe, Jan 4, 2023
Law Germany Has Returned Its First Group of Stolen Benin Bronzes to Nigeria Following a Repatriation Deal Struck Earlier This Year Nigerian officials hope the move will set an example for the British government, which forbids national institutions from returning objects. By Jo Lawson-Tancred, Dec 21, 2022
Law A German Newspaper’s #MeToo Exposé on Art Dealer Johann König Can Remain Online, a Court Has Ruled The court also ruled that three partial phrases must be removed from the story. By Eileen Kinsella, Dec 21, 2022
Law Russia’s Culture Minister and One of Its Most Prominent Art Patrons Are Now Facing Sanctions in the West The E.U. sanctioned Olga Lyubimova, while the U.S. imposed the same punishment on oligarch Vladimir Potanin. By Artnet News, Dec 20, 2022
Law The Heirs of a Jewish Art Collector Are Suing the Met Museum for Selling a Van Gogh Painting They Say Was Plundered by Nazis The Met sold the painting in a hush-hush 1972 transaction. Why the secrecy? By Sarah Cascone, Dec 19, 2022
Law A New York Judge Has Ordered Pace Gallery to Pay $6.3 Million to a Real Estate Firm The company CBRE alleges that it helped Pace secure a new lease in 2015 but the gallery refused to pay commission fees. By Taylor Dafoe, Dec 14, 2022
Law A Sheikh From Qatar’s Ruling Family Has Won a $5 Million Legal Battle Against a London Art Dealer The judge ruled that art dealer John Eskenazi acted in good faith, but that seven "ancient" sculptures he sold to the sheikh were actually contemporary forgeries. By Sarah Cascone, Dec 13, 2022
Law Richmond’s Last City-Owned Confederate Monument—Standing Atop the Grave of General A.P. Hill—Has Been Removed Until today, the removal of a memorial to General A.P. Hill had been repeatedly stalled by litigation. By Taylor Dafoe, Dec 12, 2022
Law NFT Buyers Are Suing Justin Bieber, Madonna, and Bored Ape Yacht Club’s Founders Over an Alleged ‘Scheme’ to Bilk Investors The lawsuit claims A-list celebrities promoted products without disclosing the compensation they received. By Richard Whiddington, Dec 12, 2022
Law A Tourist Was Fined for Scaling the UNESCO-Protected El Castillo Pyramid in Mexico The $250 fine, however, has stoked further outrage for being far below the standard penalty. By Vittoria Benzine, Dec 6, 2022
Law Authorities Have Confiscated Almost Two Dozen Antiquities From the Collection of Met Trustee Shelby White The seizures took place over the past 18 months. By Taylor Dafoe, Dec 5, 2022
Law A High Court Cleared a London Art Dealer of Negligence for Selling an 18th-Century Chardin Painting as a Copy "This must raise wider questions about the operation of the art market," said the aristocratic family that sold the painting for millions less that what it made just months later. By Vivienne Chow, Dec 5, 2022
Law A New York Nonprofit Has Filed a Lawsuit to Block the Smithsonian From Repatriating Its Benin Bronzes to Nigeria The suit argues that the heirs of American slaves have as much right to the Benin bronzes today as the Nigerian government. By Taylor Dafoe, Dec 2, 2022
Law A Court Has Ruled That Banksy Can Keep His Trademarks—and Anonymity—in His Battle With a U.K. Greeting Card Company The British street artist had previously stated that "copyright is for losers." By Jo Lawson-Tancred, Nov 17, 2022
