December 03, 2018
EBay and Sotheby's can recoup attorneys' fees from a group of artists who unsuccessfully sued the companies under a California state royalties law, even though the Ninth Circuit had previously declared that law largely unenforceable, the federal appeals court said Monday in a published order.
July 06, 2018
A Ninth Circuit panel ruled Friday that California's Resale Royalties Act, effective since 1977, only applies to art sales conducted prior to the 1978 effective date of the federal Copyright Act, mostly affirming a lower court's dismissal of long-running class action litigation against Christie's Inc., Sotheby's Inc. and eBay Inc.
April 10, 2018
Chuck Close and other artists urged the Ninth Circuit during oral arguments Tuesday to revive their putative class actions seeking art sale royalties from Christie's, Sotheby's and eBay, saying a California law mandating royalty payments to artists isn't preempted by the federal Copyright Act.
March 09, 2017
Artists suing Christie's Inc., Sotheby's Inc. and eBay Inc. over the auctioneers' refusal to pay state-required royalties on art sales urged the Ninth Circuit on Wednesday to toss out a lower court's holding that the California Resale Royalties Act is preempted by the Copyright Act.