Tag Archives: criminal

Destruction of the Mosul mosque and the challenges of international law

Posted on: June 30, 2017 by Alexander Herman

Yesterday, during what appears to be the near-conclusion of the battle for Mosul in Iraq, Iraqi forces moved further into the centre of the old town and, as they did, came across the ruins of the famed al-Nuri Mosque. The 12th century mosque, the same holy site where the ISIS caliphate had been proclaimed in […]

Open workshop on art crime at Queen Mary

Posted on: June 17, 2016 by Ruth Redmond-Cooper

This Tuesday, 21st June, there will be an open workshop on art crime at Queen Mary, University of London. The workshop, entitled Art, Crime and Criminals: Painting Fresh Pictures of Art Theft, Fraud and Plunder, is part of an AHRC-funded series that will continue in two further segments, one more in London (on frauds and forgeries) […]

Good news as UK to finally adopt Hague Convention

Posted on: May 19, 2016 by Alexander Herman

At long last… It was announced in the Queen’s speech yesterday that the UK Parliament would see the introduction of a bill to ratify the 1954 Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict. This is a positive sign and one that had been hinted at (with little more) by […]

The Spies-Ernst case: Art experts in France can breathe a sigh of relief

Posted on: January 27, 2016 by Judith Bouchardeau and Mathilde Roellinger

The discovery of the art forgery scandal perpetrated by Wolfang Beltracchi has given rise to a number of legal proceedings. The recent decision of the Court of Appeal of Versailles, involving art expert Werner Spies and a painting attributed to Max Ernst, is among them. The facts are as follows. At the 2004 Paris Biennale […]

Recent Developments in Art and Cultural Property Law

Posted on: November 5, 2015 by Ruth Redmond-Cooper

A One-Day Conference Saturday, 28 November 2015  9:30 am to 5:00 pm NOTRE DAME UNIVERSITY, LONDON CAMPUS 1 SUFFOLK STREET, LONDON  SW1Y 4HX (NEXT TO TRAFALGAR SQUARE)   Including the following presentations: Litigating street art: the story of the Folkestone Banksy and its return from America Tim Maxwell, Partner, Boodle Hatfield LLP Keeping it “street”: the […]

Sale today of once-“obscene” Mapplethorpe photo

Posted on: October 7, 2015 by Ruth Redmond-Cooper

Today, Sotheby’s New York will be auctioning off a print of a controversial Robert Mapplethorpe photograph entitled Man in Polyester Suit (no, we won’t describe it for you). Twenty-five years ago the work was at the centre of criminal proceedings brought against the Cincinnati Art Center and its director for contravening US obscenity laws after the institution had […]

Reforms to Ancient Monuments and Listed Buildings law in Wales

Posted on: May 11, 2015 by Richard Harwood QC

The Historic Environment (Wales) Bill was introduced into the Welsh Assembly on 1st May 2015. It proposes a variety of changes to listed building, monuments and historic environment law. These include for listed buildings: A requirement to consult on the proposed listing of buildings Interim protection during such consultations, and compensation if the building is not […]