In Long-Running Dispute Over Pissarro Masterpiece Looted by Nazis, Judge Reluctantly Rules Against Heirs
U.S. District Judge John Walter wrote that he had "no alternative but to apply Spanish law and cannot force the Kingdom of Spain or TBC to comply with its moral commitments."
April 30, 2019 at 08:06 PM
3 minute read
The original version of this story was published on The Recorder
In a long-running legal fight over a Nazi-looted painting by French impressionist master Camille Pissarro, a federal judge in Los Angeles on Tuesday sided with the Spanish Foundation who currently holds the painting over the heirs who were seeking to reclaim it.
The parties in the case agreed that Lilly Cassirer Neubauer, the great-grandmother of the Cassirer plaintiffs, sold Pissarro's “Rue Saint-Honoré, après-midi, effet de pluie” in 1939 after a Nazi-appointed art dealer seized it to conduct an appraisal and valued it at the modern equivalent of $360. The masterpiece since has been appraised at more than $30 million.
U.S. District Judge John Walter on Tuesday held in a 34-page order that Madrid-based Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection Foundation (TBC), which manages the collection of art acquired by the Spanish state that includes the Pissarro, didn't have “actual knowledge” that the painting was stolen despite “red flags” that might have raised suspicions about the painting's record of ownership.
“In other words,” the judge wrote, “although failing to investigate the provenance of the painting may have been irresponsible under these circumstances, the Court concludes that it certainly was not criminal.”
Walter, however, wrote that he found the Foundation's refusal to return the painting “inconsistent” with the Kingdom of Spain's commitment to nonbinding principals that more than 40 countries signed onto in 1998 and 2009 vowing to return art found to have been taken by the Nazis before and during the Holocaust. Walter wrote that he had “no alternative but to apply Spanish law and cannot force the Kingdom of Spain or TBC to comply with its moral commitments.”
Nixon Peabody attorney Thaddeus Stauber, who represented the defense in the case, called the judge's opinion “meticulous” and “very thoughtful.”
“Ultimately the question put before him was 'Does the foundation have actual knowledge that the painting was stolen?'” Stauber said. “He finds very convincingly that they did not.”
“I think what's important here is that these are factual findings based on evidence,” he said. “Now that we've had a full trial on the merits we think this should bring a conclusion to the case.”
Boies Schiller Flexner's Stephen Zack, who represented Neubauer's heirs, didn't immediately respond to an email seeking comment Tuesday.
This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.
To view this content, please continue to their sites.
Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
You Might Like
View AllAn ‘Indiana Jones Moment’: Mayer Brown’s John Nadolenco and Kelly Kramer on the 10-Year Legal Saga of the Bahia Emerald
Travis Lenkner Returns to Burford Capital With an Eye on Future Growth Opportunities
Legal Speak's 'Sidebar With Saul' Part V: Strange Days of Trump Trial Culminate in Historic Verdict
1 minute readTrending Stories
- 1The Tech Built by Law Firms in 2024
- 2Distressed M&A: Mass Torts, Bankruptcy and Furthering the Search for Consensus: Another Purdue Decision
- 3For Safer Traffic Stops, Replace Paper Documents With ‘Contactless’ Tech
- 4As Second Trump Administration Approaches, Businesses Brace for Sweeping Changes to Immigration Policy
- 5General Warrants and ESI
Who Got The Work
Michael G. Bongiorno, Andrew Scott Dulberg and Elizabeth E. Driscoll from Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr have stepped in to represent Symbotic Inc., an A.I.-enabled technology platform that focuses on increasing supply chain efficiency, and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The case, filed Oct. 2 in Massachusetts District Court by the Brown Law Firm on behalf of Stephen Austen, accuses certain officers and directors of misleading investors in regard to Symbotic's potential for margin growth by failing to disclose that the company was not equipped to timely deploy its systems or manage expenses through project delays. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton, is 1:24-cv-12522, Austen v. Cohen et al.
Who Got The Work
Edmund Polubinski and Marie Killmond of Davis Polk & Wardwell have entered appearances for data platform software development company MongoDB and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The action, filed Oct. 7 in New York Southern District Court by the Brown Law Firm, accuses the company's directors and/or officers of falsely expressing confidence in the company’s restructuring of its sales incentive plan and downplaying the severity of decreases in its upfront commitments. The case is 1:24-cv-07594, Roy v. Ittycheria et al.
Who Got The Work
Amy O. Bruchs and Kurt F. Ellison of Michael Best & Friedrich have entered appearances for Epic Systems Corp. in a pending employment discrimination lawsuit. The suit was filed Sept. 7 in Wisconsin Western District Court by Levine Eisberner LLC and Siri & Glimstad on behalf of a project manager who claims that he was wrongfully terminated after applying for a religious exemption to the defendant's COVID-19 vaccine mandate. The case, assigned to U.S. Magistrate Judge Anita Marie Boor, is 3:24-cv-00630, Secker, Nathan v. Epic Systems Corporation.
Who Got The Work
David X. Sullivan, Thomas J. Finn and Gregory A. Hall from McCarter & English have entered appearances for Sunrun Installation Services in a pending civil rights lawsuit. The complaint was filed Sept. 4 in Connecticut District Court by attorney Robert M. Berke on behalf of former employee George Edward Steins, who was arrested and charged with employing an unregistered home improvement salesperson. The complaint alleges that had Sunrun informed the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection that the plaintiff's employment had ended in 2017 and that he no longer held Sunrun's home improvement contractor license, he would not have been hit with charges, which were dismissed in May 2024. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer, is 3:24-cv-01423, Steins v. Sunrun, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Greenberg Traurig shareholder Joshua L. Raskin has entered an appearance for boohoo.com UK Ltd. in a pending patent infringement lawsuit. The suit, filed Sept. 3 in Texas Eastern District Court by Rozier Hardt McDonough on behalf of Alto Dynamics, asserts five patents related to an online shopping platform. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap, is 2:24-cv-00719, Alto Dynamics, LLC v. boohoo.com UK Limited.
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250