Fine Art and Cultural Property
We have an extensive team of lawyers with significant experience in the world of fine art, including representing auction houses, art dealers, personal collectors, copyright owners, charitable organizations, museums, libraries, and art galleries.
Our lawyers advise clients in all aspects of art law, from dispute resolution to contract drafting, as well as transactional and strategic advice. The firm’s global platform assists our lawyers in advising on complex cross-border issues.
Our team’s experience in the world of fine art extends beyond the practice of law. Several colleagues have lectured around the world, and published on topics ranging from resale royalties to the illegal export of art. Others have held positions in government, including being a member of the Executive Board of Spain’s Ministry of Culture and serving on the President’s Advisory Committee on the Arts in the United States.
We have advised on a range of disputes over the ownership, provenance, and authenticity of art works, including cases involving forgery, theft and historical misappropriation of assets. Our experience includes claims related to cultural property and national heritage law, as well as insurance disputes and copyright infringement cases.
Our Fine Art and Cultural Property lawyers also advise on the pursuit and defense of professional negligence claims, including claims against auction houses and valuers.
We represent clients in all aspects of the dispute resolution process, from pre-action negotiation to mediation, litigation and arbitration. Our lawyers work proactively to achieve the desired outcome and aim throughout to resolve disputes in a cost-effective manner and, where possible, to settle matters out of court.
We assist clients throughout the globe on a variety of matters, including:
- Copyright- and technology-related advice
- Art-related transactions
- Corporate law
- Estate law
- Trust law
- Tax law
- Insurance issues
Thought Leadership
The year 2025 saw significant regulatory activity in the realm of digital assets. The US Congress and financial regulators took steps to create and implement a clear legal framework to facilitate financial transactions using digital assets, and they will continue to do so in 2026.
Our annually updated Global Employer Guide provides a concise, easy-to-read summary of employment laws across more than 15 countries.
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC or the Commission) has released its latest regulatory flexibility agenda—the public list of rules the agency expects to propose or adopt in the coming year (the SEC 2026 Agenda).
Starting on 30 June 2024, with the application of the first of two introduction phases of the Regulation on Markets in Crypto-assets across all member states of the European Union, the EU has introduced for the first time a harmonized regulatory framework as well as accompanying passporting rights for service providers of the crypto-asset market, affecting both traditional institutions of the financial sector and new players emerging in the crypto-ecosystem.