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Williams v. National Gallery of Art

2017 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 154445 (2017)

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Williams v. National Gallery of Art

United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
2017 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 154445 (2017)

  • Written by Robert Cane, JD

Facts

Oskar Moll, Greta Moll’s husband, commissioned Henri Matisse to paint a portrait of Greta (the painting). In 1947, Greta gave the painting to Oskar’s former student, Gertrude Djamarani, to take to Switzerland for deposit with an art dealer for safekeeping. Djamarani sold the painting without Greta’s authorization or knowledge and kept the proceeds. Ultimately, the National Gallery of Art (the gallery) (defendant) in London acquired the painting in 1979. The gallery was a public instrumentality of Great Britain. In 2015, Greta’s heirs, Oliver Williams, Iris Filmer, and Margarete Green (plaintiffs) demanded that the gallery give them the painting, but the gallery refused. In 2016, Greta’s heirs brought an action against the gallery; the United States-based nonprofit organization, American Friends of the National Gallery, London Inc.; and Great Britain (defendants) to recover the painting. The gallery and friends moved to dismiss the action based on immunity under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act (the act).

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Caproni, J.)

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