Law, crime and regulation

Leading trade bodies are voicing concerns that a revised EU consultation into the illicit trafficking of antiquities could lead to a “burdensome” new import licence system.

The Antiquities Dealers’ Association says the wording of the Cultural Property bill currently passing through Parliament ‘risks serious damage’ to the market and exposes members of the trade to an “unfair” risk of prosecution.

A Superior Court judge in Los Angeles has heard the legal arguments that challenge California’s uncompromising ban on the sale of practically all ivory objects.

Politicians and trade bodies have raised further concerns over how a new Cultural Property Bill could impact the art market.

Police are appealing for information following a theft at Polesden Lacey House, a National Trust property in Surrey.

Protestors organised by wildlife charity Action for Elephants are demonstrating outside of The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) in London today to make the case for banning the ivory trade in the UK.

Art Recovery Group, founded by Chris Marinello three years ago as a rival to long-established The Art Loss Register, has split the firm to create a not-for-profit organisation called Artive.

The government is hoping to find a UK-based buyer to pay £1.2m for an 18th century William Hogarth painting to prevent it from leaving the country.

Efforts to protect the trade’s Small to Medium Enterprises (SMEs) against tax reforms gathered steam this week with the publication of a letter from three leading trade associations in the Financial Times.

The historic art and antiques districts of Mayfair and St James’s last night received designated protection by Westminster City Council planners as part of a new policy for central London.

Derbyshire-based Bamfords Auctioneers & Valuers has announced it will no longer sell solid ivory objects.

The Princely Collections of Liechtenstein has released a document to counter claims that 'Venus', a painting attributed to Lucas Cranach the Elder, is a forgery.

A little-publicised California law aimed at protecting buyers of sports memorabilia is threatening to impact the wider art and antiques sector.

A new law that demands that owners of ‘collectables’ provide a certificate of authenticity when selling items could be a threat to antique fairs held in the state.

The British Antiques Dealers’ Association is launching an ivory object certification system for its members, as one response to the government’s push for proof of age whenever pre-1947 worked ivory is sold.

The leader of the police body tackling wildlife crime has agreed to speak at the Antique Trade Gazette’s Seminar on CITES in January 2017, as the UK antiques sector faces the most serious threat ever to the trade of antique ivory.

A BBC documentary investigating the illegal ivory trade, hosted by celebrity chef and campaigner Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, has called for a complete ban on the buying and selling of ivory regardless of age.

Kensington MP and BADA president Victoria Borwick has responded to demands for a total ban on the ivory trade. She has called on the UK government to ensure antique ivory is exempt from any crackdown.

Stamford dealer Stuart Porter has been sentenced to five years and four months behind bars after pleading guilty to fraud charges.

Art Market Minds, the organisers of the annual Art Business Conference, are partnering with law firm K&L Gates to launch a seminar next month focusing on risk management in the art market.