EU’s Stricter Cultural Goods Regulation Sparks Antiques Market Fallout
On June 28, 2025, the EU fully enacted Regulation 2019/880, governing the import of cultural goods. The law imposes strict requirements—including proof of lawful export—for artworks and cultural items over 200 years old or valued...
National Gallery Faces Legal Dispute After Donor’s Renaissance Painting Removed from Display
National Gallery Faces Legal Challenge over Donor’s Removed Renaissance Painting In July 2025, London’s National Gallery became the center of controversy after removing a 15th-century Renaissance painting—donated by Angus Neill—from its public display. The painting,...
Denmark to Grant Copyright Over Likeness: A Landmark Move Against AI Deepfakes
Denmark to Enact World’s First Copyright Law for Personal Likeness In a bold legal move, Denmark is preparing to amend its national copyright law to grant individuals copyright ownership over their own face, voice, and...
“Blue Tiger” Copyright Infringement Case: Korean Court Delivers Rare Prison Sentence for Art Plagiaris
📌 Case Summary: Criminal Penalty for Art Plagiarism The incident occurred when a large café in Andong reproduced Ko Sang-woo’s artwork Destiny as a mural, without obtaining permission or crediting the artist. The mural was...
Columbia Art Law Symposium 2025: Contracts at the Heart of a Billion-Dollar Industry
On February 21, 2025, Columbia Law School’s Kernochan Center hosted its annual Art Law Symposium under the theme:“The New Deal in Art: Structuring Agreements for a Billion-Dollar Industry.” Held at Jerome Greene Hall, the event...
Baker McKenzie: Pioneering a New Era of Legal Advisory Bridging Art and Heritage
Baker McKenzie is charting a new course in legal advisory by integrating cultural identity, artistic heritage, and digital assets into a unified legacy planning strategy tailored for today’s global elite. Global law firm Baker McKenzie...
Tarter Krinsky & Drogin Launches Dedicated Art Law Practice
On April 22, 2025, New York-based law firm Tarter Krinsky & Drogin LLP announced the launch of its Art Law Practice Group, marking a significant step in addressing the growing legal demands of the global...
How Trump’s Tariff Policy Shakes the Global Art Market in 2025
Trump’s Tariff Shock Hits the Art World On April 3, 2025, former U.S. President Donald Trump announced a sweeping new tariff policy imposing at least a 10% import duty on all foreign goods, with 34%...
Miami Art Dealer Indicted for Selling Fake Andy Warhol Works
Leslie Roberts, a 62-year-old art dealer from Miami, and his associate Carlos Miguel Rodriguez Melendez, 37, have been federally indicted for selling counterfeit Andy Warhol artworks. Roberts, owner of Miami Fine Art Gallery, allegedly sold...
“AI Stole Our News” – Media Giants Accuse Generative AI of Content Theft
“AI Stole Our News”: Media Outlets Push Back Against Generative AI Training The Fight Over Who Owns Digital Content Has Begun Global media companies are raising the alarm. According to an April 2025 Chosun Biz...
France to Return King Toera’s Skull and Warrior Remains to Madagascar
The French government has announced its decision to return the remains of King Toera and two Malagasy warriors to Madagascar, marking a historic moment 126 years after their removal during colonial occupation. The remains, including...
U.S. Federal Court Upholds Arts Funding Ban on “Gender Ideology”
A recent decision by a U.S. federal court has reignited national debate over freedom of expression and federal arts funding.The ruling upholds a Trump-era executive order that prohibits the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA)...
Resolution of Legal Dispute Over Van Gogh’s Final Painting Site
A lengthy legal dispute concerning the site depicted in Vincent van Gogh’s last-known painting, Tree Roots, has come to a conclusion. This site, located in the French village of Auvers-sur-Oise, was the subject of a...
Trump Administration’s Reorganization of Public Art Oversight Sparks Concern
1During President Trump’s term, his administration implemented a controversial reorganization of how public art in federal buildings is managed. Historically, the General Services Administration (GSA) oversaw one of the largest public art collections in the...
Luxury Brands Voice Concern Over Proposed AI Copyright Reforms
Leading luxury brands, including Chanel and Burberry, have expressed strong opposition to the Labour Party’s proposal to amend copyright laws in favor of artificial intelligence. The proposed changes, spearheaded by the UK Labour Party, would...
US Court Rules AI-Generated Art Cannot Be Copyrighted
A recent ruling by the United States Court of Appeals in Washington, D.C. has reaffirmed that artworks created solely by artificial intelligence without human involvement are not eligible for copyright protection under U.S. law. The...
UK AI Copyright Reform Faces Strong Legal and Academic Opposition
Legal Scholars and Academics Warn Against UK’s Controversial AI Copyright Proposal The UK government’s proposed reform to copyright law—aimed at enabling artificial intelligence (AI) companies to freely use copyrighted works unless explicitly denied by the...
The Guardian’s Editorial on AI and Copyright: Protecting Human Creativity
As artificial intelligence (AI) rapidly evolves, concerns over its impact on copyright laws and artistic integrity continue to grow. The Guardian has published an editorial emphasizing the importance of protecting creative works in an era...
Jeff Koons Wins Copyright Infringement Lawsuit
Renowned American pop artist Jeff Koons has won a copyright lawsuit filed against him by sculptor Michael Hayden. The lawsuit alleged that Koons had used Hayden’s artwork without permission over three decades ago, incorporating elements...
AI in Art Authentication
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is driving a groundbreaking transformation in the field of art authentication. By integrating advanced machine learning with traditional techniques, AI offers a faster, more objective, and increasingly reliable way to distinguish originals...
UK Copyright Reform Sparks Backlash from Artists: “Protect Creative Rights”
The UK government is facing strong opposition from artists and creators as it considers relaxing copyright laws to allow AI companies to use protected content for training purposes without prior permission or payment. While the...
German Federal Court Rules Birkenstock Sandals Are Not Art
On February 21, 2025, Germany’s Federal Court of Justice (BGH) ruled that Birkenstock sandals cannot be considered works of art and are not eligible for copyright protection. This decision may make it more difficult for...
The Inigo Philbrick Scandal: How Art Market Secrecy Enables Fraud
The art market has long operated under a veil of secrecy, with private transactions dominating the industry. While discretion and confidentiality have been key features of art trading, concerns are growing that this secrecy is...
Australian Artist’s Venice Biennale Selection Withdrawn Amid Controversy
Australian artist Khaled Sabsabi and curator Michael Dagostino were originally selected to represent Australia at the 2026 Venice Biennale. However, Creative Australia recently announced that their selection had been rescinded, sparking a heated debate in...
Admiral Yi Sun-sin Portrait Copyright Legally Assigned to Bank of Korea
Legal Ruling: Copyright for Admiral Yi Sun-sin’s Portrait Belongs to the Bank of Korea A South Korean court has ruled that the Bank of Korea holds the copyright to the standard portrait of Admiral Yi...
AI Copyright Issues: Where Do We Draw the Line Between Creation and Law?
As artificial intelligence (AI) continues to revolutionize the content industry, discussions surrounding the copyright of AI-generated content are intensifying. AI has the ability to learn from vast amounts of data and generate new text, images,...
Art Market Trends 2023–2024: A Changing Landscape
The global art market has undergone notable shifts in recent years. In 2023, wealthy collectors of art and antiques spent 32% less than the previous year, with average expenditures dropping from $532,985 in 2022 to...
Amateur Art Detective Uncovers Stolen Masterpieces After 40 Years
In 1978, a home burglary in Worcester, Massachusetts led to the theft of priceless artworks by Pissarro, Renoir, and Averkamp. For over four decades, these masterpieces remained missing, with no leads on their whereabouts—until now....
Banksy Faces Trademark Dispute
The anonymous graffiti artist Banksy has found himself entangled in a legal dispute over the trademark of his name. The conflict arises from a challenge by the UK-based greeting card company Full Colour Black, which...
News Article: Koo Bon-jin Launches Artelex, Korea’s First Art Law Platform
Korea Economic Daily, October 18, 2024.
Park Soo-keun and Lee Jung-seop’s Works Now Available for Overseas Sale
As of July 23, artworks created after 1946 can be freely exported and sold overseas.
Copyright of the Artist
Lecture Materials from the Korea National University of Arts
Artist Protection in the U.S. as Seen Through the Graffiti Ruling
Quarterly Sculpture, April 2018
The Existence of Copyright in Public Artworks as Seen Through the Swedish Wikimedia Case
July 2016, Copyright Culture Monthly
Moral Rights of Artists (2011)
Excellent Academic Book by the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism.
