Legal Cases

THE dealers who found a cache of work by the artist Sir Kyffin Williams in a secret drawer have given it up in the face of legal pressure.

Top British art dealer Simon Dickinson was arrested by Customs authorities on September 14 in connection with the £17m sale of nine Dutch Old Master paintings to the Liechtenstein Museum.

AT Bristol Crown Court last week Torquay art dealer Colin Stodgell was jailed for three years for income tax fraud amounting to £750,000 over seven years.

ROGUE bidder Mark Wilson will be subject to criminal prosecution if he continues his spree, Nottingham Insolvency Court has ruled.

Does Rowling have them rattled?

High Court turns down Iran’s bid to enforce its own penal law in UK in attempt to claim artefacts

Buyers and sellers in collusion case set for $93.5m pay day

A COURT injunction against eBay is forcing the online giant to vet all Harry Potter titles before they are posted on their Indian site.

THE London trade can breathe a sigh of relief. The British Art Market Federation (BAMF) have won their battle to stop a new Government Bill introducing draconian measures to regulate the capital’s dealers and auction houses.

A recent federal law, designed to preserve the integrity of United States medals and decorations, is creating chaos within the militaria collecting field.

THE FBI have arrested a retired lawyer who became involved in a £20m stolen art saga. If convicted, he could face up to 10 years in jail.

Council commission points to more sympathetic position

THE High Court judge in the dispute over a fragment of limestone relief removed from Persepolis has explained why he did not rule that it should be returned to Iran.

Luxury goods firm LVMH, owners of Louis Vuitton and Dior, have filed a lawsuit against eBay contending that most of the products on the site purporting to carry their top brands are fakes.

POLICE have confirmed they are committed to tracing over 40 rare books stolen from Manchester’s Central Library after a senior judge demanded that greater efforts be made to recover them.

A COURT ruling means new Venice auction house San Marco can proceed with their July 8-9 sale - but only under strict conditions.

THE notorious map thief Edward Forbes Smiley III has appeared in court in the US where he admitted to stealing 97 antique maps worth more than $3m.

Tiffany the jewellers are suing eBay in a case that challenges the very formula that has made the online giant such a success.

FOR the second week in a row a Government U-turn has dealt the British art and antiques industry a bodyblow – but the latest move is far more serious than last week’s SIPPs debacle.

THE case against an auctioneer accused of trading in stolen goods as part of a £30m antiques crime ring has collapsed.