We reviewed in December an important decision that addressed the duties of loyalty that art advisors may, or may not, owe to their clients in dealing in the art market. That question—of to what extent advisors and consultants must subordinate their interests entirely to the clien—is of obvious importance in a marketplace where buyer and seller often do not interact with each other. Whereas December’s news about the sale of Cady Noland’s Log Cabin was a reminder that advisors are not necessarily fiduciaries, this month’s decision about the sale of a Basquiat painting underscores that where a fiduciary relationship exists, the penalties for straying from those obligations can be severe.
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Topics:
Cady Noland,
Log Cabin,
Michael Schulhof,
Lisa Jacobs Fine Art,
Jean-Michel Basquiat,
Hannelore Schulhof,
Lisa Jacobs,
Future Sciences Versus the Man,
fiduciary duty,
art advisor
The ongoing saga between Yves Bouvier and Dmitri Rybolovlev over Bouvier’s sale to the Russian billionaire of Leonardo’s Salvator Mundi (and a recent preemptive suit by Sotheby’s against the original sellers of the work to Bouvier) has cast unusual scrutiny over the often-private relationships between art dealers, art advisors, and their clients. Chief among the issues between Bouvier and Rybolovlev is whether Bouvier’s resale to Rybolovlev at an allegedly markedly higher price than Bouvier purchased it for constitutes self-dealing by a trusted agent, or the time-tested adage of buy low, sell high. This is a question of great significant for obvious reasons: in private sales the collector is often relying on the expertise of the art professional. In any fiduciary relationship, however, it is axiomatic that the fiduciary agent (like an attorney or a trustee) cannot enrich himself at the expense of the beneficiary. Whether Bouvier is indeed a fiduciary is a fiercely debated question for another day.
A recent dismissal in New York of a case about Cady Noland’s Log Cabin provides some welcome guidance on the contours of these relationships in the eyes of the law. The finding that the defendant owed no exceptional duty to the plaintiff is a significant pushback against the expansive view of agency that Rybolovlev, among others, has advocated. The decision clarifies that interaction with an expert does not elevate that expert to a position of undivided loyalty. Rather, the terms of the relationship must be on of special trust and confidence. The duties of actual fiduciaries are not changed by this decision, but it will help professionals and collectors understand who is, and who is not, filling that role.
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Topics:
Cady Noland,
Visual Artists Rights Act of 1990,
VARA,
conversion,
breach of fiduciary duty,
Yves Bouvier,
Log Cabin,
Dimitry Ryobolovlev,
unjust enrichment,
17 U.S.C. 106A,
Brett Shaheen,
Janssen Gallery,
Michael Janssen,
Scott Mueller,
Marisa Newman Projects,
Wilhelm Schurmann
Last week the Art Law Committee of the New York City Bar Association hosted a terrific two-hour event. Entitled “Rethinking Art Authentication,” the discussion aimed to address a way forward from the problems of fakes, forgeries, and authentication lawsuits that have plagued the art market in recent years. It was a lively and fascinating evening.
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Topics:
Karl Waldmann,
Ceroni,
Jacobs Technion-Cornell Institute,
Leonardo da Vinci,
Cady Noland,
Knoedler,
New York Assembly,
Catalogue raisonée,
authentication,
Dean R. Nicyper,
New York University,
Colette Loll,
Blue Room,
Dan Flavin,
Dada,
Visual Artists Rights Act,
Rick Johnson,
Rethinking Art Authentication,
The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduct,
Jennifer L. Mass,
Art Law Committee,
Trial Lawyers Association,
Beltracchi,
Events,
La Bella Principessa,
Hyperspectral imaging,
Gerhard Richter,
New York City Bar Association,
Cornell Tech,
Rijksmuseum,
Cowboys Milking,
Andy Warhol,
Picasso,
New York Senate,
Walter Benjamin,
Elmyr de Hory,
Withers Bergman LLP,
Amadeo Modigliani,
Amy M. Adler
