On June 8, 2021, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ruled in Beierwaltes v. Federal Office of Culture of the Swiss Confederation that the temporary seizure in Geneva of antiquities belonging to Colorado-based art collectors conducted by Swiss authorities, as part of a Swiss police investigation,
Continue Reading Swiss Miss: The Second Circuit Rejects Application of Expropriation Exception to Seizure of Antiquities by Swiss Law Enforcement Officers
On February 3, 2021, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled unanimously in favor of Germany in a dispute over whether American courts may preside over a lawsuit brought by the heirs of German Jewish art dealers who alleged that the Nazi regime coerced the 1935 sale of certain artworks.
Background
For nearly 80 years, Berlin’s Kunstgewerbemuseum, or the Museum of Decorative Arts (formerly the Schlossmuseum), has displayed a collection of medieval religious artwork known as the “Guelph Treasure.”[1] The museum describes the art, estimated to be worth over $250 million, as “the highlight, the center, the heart of
Continue Reading An Uncertain Fate for the Guelph Treasure
On June 9, 2020, the Second Circuit effectively terminated Sotheby’s efforts to bring suit against a foreign nation for interference with one of its auctions, reversing and remanding Barnet v. Ministry of Culture and Sports of the Hellenic Republic to the Southern District of New York with instructions to dismiss
Continue Reading Second Circuit Holds that FSIA Bars Suit Against Sovereign Asserting Cultural Patrimony Claim