Featured Articles

Say it Isn't Picasso - Paris Art Theft Raises Security and Title Concerns

May 21, 2010 15:43

A major art heist this past week raises considerable issues regarding art security and title. At the Paris Museum of Modern Art, a brazen thief made off with five paintings, valued together in excess of $120 million. The masked intruder's plunder included significant works by Picasso, Matisse,...

Grandma Robbed by Nazis - Grandson Sues Spain to Recover Stolen Paintings

September 02, 2010 12:24

In August, 2009, the Ninth Circuit decided en banc by 9-2 that a California resident Claude Cassirer can sue Spain to recover his grandmother's oil painting "Rue Saint-Honore, apres-midi, effet de pluie," painted by the French impressionist Camille Pissarro and taken by the Nazi...

We Are Living in an Immaterial World

Sheppard Mullin
November 12, 2010 14:46

The Museum of Modern's Art (MoMA) recently announced its ‘acquisition’ of the typographic ‘@’ symbol. This unprecedented move marks a significant step into the unexplored realm of ‘acquiring’ non-physical objects.  As bloggers, critics, and fans erupt, many...

Extreme Makeover: Arts Edition

Sheppard Mullin
February 17, 2011 17:36

The notion that the arts make our culture "richer" is commonplace in our vernacular, but an undeniable trend has emerged giving an entirely new meaning to the phrase: across the board, the country’s nonprofit arts and culture industry has grown by twenty-four percent over the past...

Recent Articles

Rastaman Vibration

Sheppard Mullin
March 01, 2012 10:08

The appeal in the case of Cariou v. Prince is shaping up to be the biggest visual arts copyright case in many years. It will likely result in guidance on what qualifies as a transformative use for appropriation art under the doctrine of fair use. Appropriation art "borrows" pre-existing...

Fashion Designers: Legally Naked?

Sheppard Mullin
February 10, 2012 22:13

By Tyler Baker and Christine Steiner With New York's Fashion Week upon us, the time is appropriate to examine the intellectual property protections available to some of the most prominent artists in popular culture: fashion designers. No one would seriously question the great artistic talents of...

The Year In Review

Sheppard Mullin
January 06, 2012 20:31

The past year was packed with litigation that ranged from broad constitutional questions to the ever present scourge of forgeries. Art Law Gallery presents highlights of some of the most important cases:  The Walking Dead Copyrights: Conductor Lawrence Golan's long-running "zombie"...

Cherchez les Catalogues Raisonné

Sheppard Mullin
December 15, 2011 19:29

The success of the art market depends largely on confidence in the authenticity of artists’ works. Traditionally, a work in an artist’s “catalogue raisonné” has been key to confirming the authenticity, and thus value. To that point, a recent lawsuit filed in...

Authentication Board to Death by Lawsuits

Sheppard Mullin
November 08, 2011 22:44

The recent news that the Andy Warhol Art Authentication Board, Inc. will dissolve in early 2012 brings the role of authentication boards in the art world to the fore once again. The Board, which has been charged with authenticating the works of Andy Warhol since 1996, has been the subject of...

Artist Resale Royalties--New Cases under California Law

Sheppard Mullin
October 26, 2011 16:35

On October 17, a proposed class of artists filed three federal lawsuits against auction houses Christie’s, Inc., and Sotheby’s, Inc., and internet auctioneer eBay, Inc., alleging that the defendants sold their artwork at California auctions and on behalf of California sellers, but...