Law, crime and regulation

A court in the US has given the go-ahead for Germany to be sued for the return of Nazi-looted art and artefacts under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act.

The French law that states vendors should pay Droit de Suite has been affirmed by a Versailles court.

China is shutting a third of its ivory factories and shops, as it begins to meet the requirements of a formal ban by the end of the year.

An insurance firm has sounded a warning about cyber fraudsters who appear to be targeting dealers and auctioneers with an invoice scam.

The art and antiques trade has raised fears that the launch of a new government money laundering watchdog will lead to further red tape for dealers and auctioneers in the UK.

Stoke-on-Trent’s Potteries Museum & Art Gallery is hopeful of raising nearly half a million pounds to buy a Wedgwood First Day’s vase after it was awarded a £90,000 grant from the Art Fund.

A government u-turn on a National Insurance rise has been welcomed by the art and antiques trade, giving hope that a review of business rates could follow.

A report out today (March 14) calls for "significant structural changes" to the laws governing the sale of ivory in the UK but trade bodies have queried its methodology, citing low response rates.

A Lancashire art and antiques dealership is appealing for help to track down a stolen antique Russian drinking vessel.

Some small businesses have been given a reprieve in the Budget today from the planned hike in business rates.

Egypt’s former antiquities minister Mamdouh al-Damaty has called for a change of policy relating to Egyptian artefacts traded abroad.

A police ordeal for a Derbyshire antiques dealer following a “draconian” swoop over a Victorian ivory thermometer has finally been resolved.

The chief executive of BADA, Marco Forgione, has lobbied Mayor of London Sadiq Khan on imminent hikes to business rates and changes to tax reporting that are set to impact the trade.