Posted on: May 9, 2017 by Geoffrey Bennett
On the year marking the 20th anniversary of the modernisation of treasure law in England, a case has come to light serving as a throwback to the earlier law of ‘treasure trove’. The Treasure Act 1996, implemented in 1997, marked a significant advance on the previous law. The definition of ‘treasure’ under the Act is […]
Posted on: February 23, 2017 by Emily Gould
*Update: On the day of going to press, we later discovered that, with impressive speed and efficiency, the Bill received Royal Assent, so look out for further posts on the Cultural Property (Armed Conflicts) Act 2017! As of this Monday (20 February) the UK is now one step closer to ratifying the 1954 Hague Convention […]
Posted on: July 15, 2016 by Alexander Herman
No, your eyes are not deceiving you. The title of this post is correct. There is currently a Bill before the UK Parliament to return the Elgin Marbles (aka the Parthenon Marbles) to Greece. It received its first reading in the House of Commons on Monday, 11th July, and is scheduled for a second reading on […]
Posted on: July 4, 2016 by Emily Gould
It was heartening to see the strong support for the Cultural Property (Armed Conflicts) Bill 2016 when it was debated at the Committee Stage in the House of Lords last week (28 June). The Lords discussed at length, and with some passion, the amendments tabled by a number of peers. The proposals for changes came […]
Posted on: June 29, 2016 by Alexander Herman
Of course we need to mention the very real possibility of Britain’s withdrawal from the European Union following last Thursday’s referendum vote. We held a class on Saturday as part of our Diploma in Art Profession Law and Ethics (with some sad faces in the room, it should be said) and listed off a number of instruments and regulations in […]
Posted on: June 7, 2016 by Emily Gould
It was interesting to see that the judgment in the important ‘Old Flo’ case on which we reported in July 2015 has now been upheld by the Court of Appeal. You might recall the story. Old Flo – or Draped Seated Woman, to give Henry Moore’s 1,500 kg bronze figure her proper title – was […]
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 […]
Posted on: April 25, 2016 by Emily Gould
The launch event for the new Museums Code of Ethics took place at the Wellcome Collection last Friday, 22nd April. You would be forgiven for thinking that a Friday afternoon event to explore an ethics code might not be the greatest crowd-puller; but on this occasion, you’d be much mistaken. Almost 150 delegates came to […]
Posted on: March 17, 2016 by Paul Stevenson
West Sussex-based marine consulting and operations company, Blue Water Recoveries, has announced the find of (probably) the Portuguese East Indiaman, the Esmeralda. Although not certain, it is thought to be very likely that the wreck, which lies off the coast of Oman, is the 500 year-old wreck of the vessel believed to have been commanded […]
Posted on: January 15, 2016 by Ruth Redmond-Cooper
The Institute of Art & Law’s Diploma in Art Profession Law and Ethics course (DipAPLE) is set to begin next month, comprising seven monthly sessions running from February to July 2016. DipAPLE, which has been running for ten years, is an intensive and interactive course open both to lawyers and professionals from the art market or museum […]