Janet Ulph's and Ian Smith's "The Illicit Trade in Art and Antiquities" reviewed by Marc Balcells (The Journal of Art Crime, Spring 2013)

Marc Balcells reviews The Illicit Trade in Art and Antiquities (Hart Publishing 2012) by Janet Ulph and Ian Smith in the Spring 2013 issue of The Journal of Art Crime.

Janet Ulph and Ian Smith write, mainly from a legal point of view, about the illicit trade in art and antiquities, the criminal and civil liability derived from these kind of cases, and the efforts regarding international recovery. The goal of the text is to focus upon the extent to which laws can protect vulnerable countries, while considering what further steps could be taken in the future. Therefore, the book deals with this particular topic from a double perspective: an international point of view, on the one hand; on the other, drawing from the experience of the authors (Mrs. Ulph is a solicitor and a professor in Commercial Law at the University of Leicester, and Mr. Smith is a barrister in London), it uses many cases from English law.

The book covers, in a logical and ordered structure, the different topics mentioned above. The first chapter deals generally with the trade in art and antiquities: concepts and broad topics are defined, such as the legal right to claim, good faith purchasers, or the global market in art and antiquities. The situation in Iraq is used as a study case, to illustrate the patters of this form of illicit trade. 

The second chapter talks about international initiatives, to focus on the major international conventions and other legal instruments which, objectively, have an impact upon the illicit trade in art and antiquities. The scope of this chapter is truly amazing, going beyond the UNESCO and UNIDROIT conventions, and analyzing such legal dispositions as the Vienna or Palermo conventions, among others.

The complete book review is included in the ninth issue of The Journal of Art Crime, edited by ARCA Founder Noah Charney (available electronically and in print via subscription and Amazon.com). Associate Editor Marc Balcells (ARCA '11) is a Graduate Teaching Fellow at the Department of Political Science, John Jay College of Criminal Justice -- The City University of New York.

Marc Balcells reviews The Illicit Trade in Art and Antiquities (Hart Publishing 2012) by Janet Ulph and Ian Smith in the Spring 2013 issue of The Journal of Art Crime.

Janet Ulph and Ian Smith write, mainly from a legal point of view, about the illicit trade in art and antiquities, the criminal and civil liability derived from these kind of cases, and the efforts regarding international recovery. The goal of the text is to focus upon the extent to which laws can protect vulnerable countries, while considering what further steps could be taken in the future. Therefore, the book deals with this particular topic from a double perspective: an international point of view, on the one hand; on the other, drawing from the experience of the authors (Mrs. Ulph is a solicitor and a professor in Commercial Law at the University of Leicester, and Mr. Smith is a barrister in London), it uses many cases from English law.

The book covers, in a logical and ordered structure, the different topics mentioned above. The first chapter deals generally with the trade in art and antiquities: concepts and broad topics are defined, such as the legal right to claim, good faith purchasers, or the global market in art and antiquities. The situation in Iraq is used as a study case, to illustrate the patters of this form of illicit trade. 

The second chapter talks about international initiatives, to focus on the major international conventions and other legal instruments which, objectively, have an impact upon the illicit trade in art and antiquities. The scope of this chapter is truly amazing, going beyond the UNESCO and UNIDROIT conventions, and analyzing such legal dispositions as the Vienna or Palermo conventions, among others.

The complete book review is included in the ninth issue of The Journal of Art Crime, edited by ARCA Founder Noah Charney (available electronically and in print via subscription and Amazon.com). Associate Editor Marc Balcells (ARCA '11) is a Graduate Teaching Fellow at the Department of Political Science, John Jay College of Criminal Justice -- The City University of New York.

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Derek Fincham on "Will the Statute of Frauds Crack the Art Market's Shield of Anonymity in New York" in "The Empty Frame" (The Journal of Art Crime, Spring 2013)

Derek Fincham writes on "Will the Statue of Frauds Crack the Art Market's Shield of Anonymity in New York?" his column "The Empty Frame" for the Spring 2013 issue of The Journal of Art Crime.

In his seminal 1982 article, Harvard Law Professor Paul Bator noted that the art trade is shrouded in mystery. In the thirty years since Bator examined the international art market, little has changed with respect to the basic information which is made available when works of art are bought and sold at auction. Auction house catalogues typically include little more than a cursory "this work is from a private collection." That may change, at least in New York when the State's highest court will take up a recent auction dispute.

In September of 2008, a 19th century “fine Russian silver/enamel covered box with gilt interior” was slated to be auctioned by the William J. Jenack Auctioneers. Prior to the auction, the auction house received an absentee bid from Albert Rabizadeh. This absentee bidder’s form included Mr. Rabizadeh’s name, phone number, address, email address, and credit card number. The defendant was assigned bidder number 305, as indicated on his form, and his bid for a price of $400,000 was the winning bid for the antique box. This dispute arose, as so many of them do, when the winning bidder refused to pay for the antique. Auction houses rely on the binding nature of these bids in conducting their business, so it should come as no surprise that the Jenack auction house brought a suit against the allegedly derelict bidder. The low of contract might ordinarily be sufficient to require Mr. Rabizadeh to pay the asking price. At the initial trial, Mr. Jenack successfully sued and the trial court held that Rabizadeh was required to make good on his winning bid. However a well- established principle of English and American law, the statute of frauds, requires that certain agreements be reduced to writing. And the district court ruling was overturned on appeal.

Derek Fincham is an assistant professor at South Texas College of Law where he teaches art law and legal writing. He has lectured on ARCA's Postgraduate certificate program in art crime and cultural heritage protection since 2009. He earned his PhD from the University of Aberdeen, King's College, for his dissertation examining the response of the United States and United Kingdom to the illicit trade in art and antiquities. He holds a JD from Wake Forest University, and a BA in History from the University of Kansas. He regularly blogs on heritage issues at www.illicit-cultural-property.blogspot.com.

The ninth issue of The Journal of Art Crime, edited by Noah Charney and published by ARCA, is available electronically (pdf) and in print via subscription and Amazon.com. The Associate Editor is Marc Balcells (ARCA '11), Graduate Teaching Fellow, Department of Political Science, John Jay College of Criminal Justice -- The City University of New York.

Derek Fincham writes on "Will the Statue of Frauds Crack the Art Market's Shield of Anonymity in New York?" his column "The Empty Frame" for the Spring 2013 issue of The Journal of Art Crime.

In his seminal 1982 article, Harvard Law Professor Paul Bator noted that the art trade is shrouded in mystery. In the thirty years since Bator examined the international art market, little has changed with respect to the basic information which is made available when works of art are bought and sold at auction. Auction house catalogues typically include little more than a cursory "this work is from a private collection." That may change, at least in New York when the State's highest court will take up a recent auction dispute.

In September of 2008, a 19th century “fine Russian silver/enamel covered box with gilt interior” was slated to be auctioned by the William J. Jenack Auctioneers. Prior to the auction, the auction house received an absentee bid from Albert Rabizadeh. This absentee bidder’s form included Mr. Rabizadeh’s name, phone number, address, email address, and credit card number. The defendant was assigned bidder number 305, as indicated on his form, and his bid for a price of $400,000 was the winning bid for the antique box. This dispute arose, as so many of them do, when the winning bidder refused to pay for the antique. Auction houses rely on the binding nature of these bids in conducting their business, so it should come as no surprise that the Jenack auction house brought a suit against the allegedly derelict bidder. The low of contract might ordinarily be sufficient to require Mr. Rabizadeh to pay the asking price. At the initial trial, Mr. Jenack successfully sued and the trial court held that Rabizadeh was required to make good on his winning bid. However a well- established principle of English and American law, the statute of frauds, requires that certain agreements be reduced to writing. And the district court ruling was overturned on appeal.

Derek Fincham is an assistant professor at South Texas College of Law where he teaches art law and legal writing. He has lectured on ARCA's Postgraduate certificate program in art crime and cultural heritage protection since 2009. He earned his PhD from the University of Aberdeen, King's College, for his dissertation examining the response of the United States and United Kingdom to the illicit trade in art and antiquities. He holds a JD from Wake Forest University, and a BA in History from the University of Kansas. He regularly blogs on heritage issues at www.illicit-cultural-property.blogspot.com.

The ninth issue of The Journal of Art Crime, edited by Noah Charney and published by ARCA, is available electronically (pdf) and in print via subscription and Amazon.com. The Associate Editor is Marc Balcells (ARCA '11), Graduate Teaching Fellow, Department of Political Science, John Jay College of Criminal Justice -- The City University of New York.

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The Journal of Art Crime, Fall 2012: "Estimating the Volume of Counterfeit U.S. Currency in Circulation Worldwide: Data and Extrapolation" by Ruth Judson and Richard Porter

In the Fall 2012 electronic edition of The Journal of Art Crime, authors Ruth Judson and Richard Porter  write of "Estimating the Volume of Counterfeit U.S. Currency in Circulation Worldwide: Data and Extrapolation":

The incidence of currency counterfeiting and the possible total stock of counterfeits in circulation are popular topics of speculation and discussion in the press and are of substantial practical interest to the U. S. Treasury and the U. S. Secret Service.  This paper assembles data from Federal Reserve and U. S. Secret Service sources and presents a range of estimates for the number of counterfeits in circulation. In addition, the paper presents figures on counterfeit passing activity by denomination, location, and method of production.  The paper has two main conclusions: first, the stock of counterfeits in the world as a whole is likely on the order of 1 or fewer per 10,000 genuine notes in both piece and value terms; second, losses to the U. S. public from the most commonly used note, the $20, are relatively small, and are miniscule when counterfeit notes of reasonable quality are considered.

Dr. Judson is an economist in the Division of International Finance at the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System in Washington, D. C.  She holds an A. B. in Russian Civilization from the University of Chicago and a PhD in economics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.  Her research and policy work is wide-ranging, and has addressed topics in cross-country growth, panel data estimation methods, monetary policy implementation, the monetary aggregates, and the measurement and analysis of U. S. dollar usage outside the United States, and, most recently, cross-border capital flows.  Along with Richard Porter, she received a certificate of appreciation in special recognition of efforts and superior contributions for the International Currency Audit Program (ICAP) to the law enforcement responsibilities of the United States Secret Service in 2000.  The analysis in this article grew out of work on the ICAP.

Richard Porter is a vice president and senior research advisor, payments in the economic research department of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago.  Before joining the Bank, Porter served as an economist at the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System for over three decades, most recently as a senior adviser in the Division of Monetary Affairs.  Prior to that, Porter was an assistant professor of economics at Ohio State University.

Here's a link to the ARCA website and information about subscribing to The Journal of Art Crime.

In the Fall 2012 electronic edition of The Journal of Art Crime, authors Ruth Judson and Richard Porter  write of "Estimating the Volume of Counterfeit U.S. Currency in Circulation Worldwide: Data and Extrapolation":

The incidence of currency counterfeiting and the possible total stock of counterfeits in circulation are popular topics of speculation and discussion in the press and are of substantial practical interest to the U. S. Treasury and the U. S. Secret Service.  This paper assembles data from Federal Reserve and U. S. Secret Service sources and presents a range of estimates for the number of counterfeits in circulation. In addition, the paper presents figures on counterfeit passing activity by denomination, location, and method of production.  The paper has two main conclusions: first, the stock of counterfeits in the world as a whole is likely on the order of 1 or fewer per 10,000 genuine notes in both piece and value terms; second, losses to the U. S. public from the most commonly used note, the $20, are relatively small, and are miniscule when counterfeit notes of reasonable quality are considered.

Dr. Judson is an economist in the Division of International Finance at the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System in Washington, D. C.  She holds an A. B. in Russian Civilization from the University of Chicago and a PhD in economics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.  Her research and policy work is wide-ranging, and has addressed topics in cross-country growth, panel data estimation methods, monetary policy implementation, the monetary aggregates, and the measurement and analysis of U. S. dollar usage outside the United States, and, most recently, cross-border capital flows.  Along with Richard Porter, she received a certificate of appreciation in special recognition of efforts and superior contributions for the International Currency Audit Program (ICAP) to the law enforcement responsibilities of the United States Secret Service in 2000.  The analysis in this article grew out of work on the ICAP.

Richard Porter is a vice president and senior research advisor, payments in the economic research department of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago.  Before joining the Bank, Porter served as an economist at the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System for over three decades, most recently as a senior adviser in the Division of Monetary Affairs.  Prior to that, Porter was an assistant professor of economics at Ohio State University.

Here's a link to the ARCA website and information about subscribing to The Journal of Art Crime.

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