We advise clients in a comprehensive range of issues that arise in the art market. We represent collectors, artists, galleries, art advisors, appraisers and investors across the market on transactions, disputes, donations and exhibitions.
Our team has decades of relevant art world experience:
- negotiating agreements related to purchases, sales, consignments, and donations of art
- structuring art financing transactions
- offering tax guidance
- negotiating copyright and related disputes
- litigating art market disputes
We have an unusually deep understanding of the global art world’s many unique contexts, and we work closely with collectors, artists, and gallerists, as well as family offices, investors, private dealers, advisors, appraisers, artists’ foundations, artists’ estates, and cultural institutions including non-profits, foundations, and museums.
Deals. We support clients navigating art market transactions such as private sales agreements, auction and dealer consignments, insurance, and loan agreements to museums and exhibitions. We advise appraisers and art advisors concerning the varied issues that can arise in complex engagements. We have extensive experience with art-secured lending and art finance. We also are knowledgeable about tax issues relating to the purchase and sale of art and art funds.
Disputes. When disputes arise, we leverage our deep experience representing our clients in specialized art-related litigations, including copyright, authenticity, or ownership disputes. We work to negotiate resolutions when that is in our clients’ interest. And, when the circumstances call for it, we are trial-ready.
Our team’s broad experience with the full gamut of corporate, transactional, and litigation matters that arise in the everyday course of operating a business allows us to offer a comprehensive suite of legal services to our clients.
Team member experiences include:
- Defending head of a leading art gallery in a jury trial over high-profile fraud case.
- Currently serving on the NYC Bar Association Art Law Committee as co-head of the subcommittee on Tax, Trust and Estates, Museums and Not-for-Profits.
- Serving as general counsel to a prominent art magazine.
- Serving as outside counsel to numerous arts organizations.
- Members of our team have also served, and continue to serve, on the boards of prominent arts organizations, foundations and museums.
We have advised on the following representative matters:[1]
Collectors
- Advising collectors and art advisors negotiating purchase and sale agreements, dealer consignments, auction agreements, auction house guarantees, and museum loans and donations.
- Advising collectors on art related estate planning and artist’s families on estate related issues.
- Advising on art-related insurance issues.
- Advising on an international museum loan of works by Basquiat.
- Representing an investor in a contract dispute relating to the purchase of a work attributed to Andy Warhol.
- Represented patron in negotiating donation agreements with internationally prominent museums in Venice and Israel relating to collection of 90+ minimalist artworks.
- Representing the owner of an Andy Warhol work in litigation relating to a conversion claim against a subsequent purchaser.
Art Finance
- Representing a major auction house in its $1 billion refinancing of loans secured by art loan receivables, a deal that was named “Structured Finance and Securitization Deal of the Year” at the IFLR Americas Awards.
- Advising an investment partnership on art market issues.
- Advising on NFTs and blockchain-related tax issues for funds and companies.
- Advising art funds and other collectibles funds on tax related issues for foreign and domestic investors.
- Advising on organizing a special purpose vehicle for investing in digital collectibles
- Advising key founder in restructuring and negotiating equity in an early-stage NFT startup
Galleries and Private Dealers
- Representing galleries in art sale transactions as well as corporate restructuring, succession planning, and archive placement.
- Representing former president of Knoedler, a leading art gallery, in a jury trial of fraud claims arising from the sale of forged works previously attributed to Mark Rothko.
- Representing a major art gallery in a real estate dispute.
- Advising a gallery in tax structuring to allow for foreign investors and to provide equity based compensation to its senior personnel
Artists
- Representing in transactions and issues with galleries, collectors, copyright questions, archive placement, and estate planning.
- Representing an artist and her gallery in litigation of copyright infringement and defamation claims.
- Advising on matters relating to the estate of a leading founder of Modern Indian art.
- Advising on issues arising in the course of various land-art projects.
- Representing the Starn twins in connection with formation of a non-profit relating to the Big Bambύ project.
- Advising an artist/architect on various IP issues related to construction and implementation of designs.
Art Advisors and Appraisers
- Advising court appointed appraisers of a high-profile artist’s estate.
- Representing art advisors and appraisers negotiating complex engagement agreements.
- Advised art advisor on organizing and presenting government-supported exhibit at royal palace in Seoul, Korea featuring European international contemporary artist.
Museums
- Advising the Guggenheim Museum on a variety of issues.
- Representing Crystal Bridges in purchase, sale and loan of art works and drafting model agreements for museum.
- Serving on numerous boards and museum committees.
[1] Includes matters our attorneys have handled at other law firms.