Two major High Court legal rulings in December have raised questions around presale practices and dealers’ duty of care to clients. The two cases involving respected London dealers John Eskenazi and Simon Dickinson brought up issues of negligence and authenticity with differing results.

In a decision that shook some in the sector, a High Court judge ruled that a leading London-based specialist in ancient Asian art, had negligently sold seven fake artefacts. Less than a week later, another UK High Court judge cleared an art market heavyweight of negligence surrounding the sale of the painting La Bénédicité (Saying Grace) by Jean-Baptiste-Siméon Chardin. 

In The Art Newspaper Associate, Fred Clark comments:

“The focus falls on whether the standard of care was upheld by the dealers, the level of expertise they demonstrated and what the client could reasonably expect in return from their representatives, given the dealers’ reputations and lengthy careers.”

“Both cases are significant, and highlight issues prompted in a market where everyone wants to make a profit and that profit sits within a finite pool of expertise and supply.”

The full article in The Art Newspaper can be found here.