Legal Cases

A US picture dealer has pleaded guilty to falsifying business records while a director at New York’s Salander O’Reilly Galleries.

A LEGAL dispute in the US Federal court over auction guarantees could lead to a tightening of the terms and conditions under which they are issued.

A COUPLE dealing in antique desks have issued a warning over internet addresses after discovering that a rival was using their name to divert potential customers to his own website.

THE UK government has acceded to European Union rules which would see the extradition of suspects like antiquities dealer Malcolm Hay.

THE Greek courts have sentenced an English antiquities dealer to three years in jail after convicting him in his absence on charges linked to stolen artefacts.

AUCTIONEERS’ liability for their catalogue descriptions may soon stretch far beyond the saleroom – even to third parties not involved in bidding – if plaintiffs win a pending New York test case.

COSMETICS giant L’Oréal took their multi-pronged legal tussle with online auction site eBay to the High Court in London last week.

A retired Massachusetts lawyer found guilty of involvement in a major art theft that extends back three decades has been sentenced to seven years in a Federal prison.

A FAMILY feud has led to yet another cancellation of the sale of 63 works of art by Oskar Schlemmer, one of the central figures of the Bauhaus.

A DEALER has raised serious questions over Royal Mail’s compensation policy for items lost in the post following a dispute that ended in court. Despite the county court judge ruling against the postal service, Royal Mail are refusing to change their policy.

AN eBay user is being threatened with a libel action after posting negative feedback about a seller.

An American collector has filed two lawsuits against Sotheby's, alleging they concealed a financial interest in and inflated the price for an Edward Hicks' Peaceable Kingdom that he bought in May for almost $10m.

Following a successful conclusion to one of the largest cases of its type in years, a serial forger has been jailed for the faking and forging of antique silver flatware. Here ATG publish material accumulated during the investigation in an attempt to minimise the impact of the fakes on the spoon market.

A retired Massachusetts lawyer has been found guilty of involvement in a major art theft that extends back three decades.

The Reserve Bank of Australia are to challenge eBay on their decision to make PayPal mandatory on all sales listings. The RBA says it will “shortly be holding discussions with PayPal [an eBay subsidiary] with a view to seeking the removal of these rules”.

Tiffany & Co have appealed over the ruling that eBay do not have to police their auction site for fakes before they are sold to unwitting buyers.

Ebay have won a landmark judgment in the US federal courts, which effectively protects their position as an independent trading platform.

EBAY Australia have decided to drop the case for PayPal exclusivity ahead of a decision on the matter fro the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission.