The first specialized tribunal devoted exclusively to art disputes, the Court of Arbitration for Art (CAfA), will open for business on April 1, 2019 in the Hague. The CAfA will conduct proceedings around the globe, addressing the full spectrum of art disputes, including authenticity, contract and chain of title disputes, copyright claims and more. 

William Charron, Co-Chair of Pryor Cashman's Art Law practice, who conceived of the CAfA, spoke with The Art Newspaper about the difficulty courts and juries often face when confronted with art law cases and why publishing the tribunal’s decisions will lead to greater acceptance from the art market.

“The market values anonymity but the objective was to have a tribunal that the market would accept. So we struck a balance in a default rule to publish but keep party names anonymous,” with the artwork itself identified, Charron said. “The idea at every point is accuracy and market legitimacy.”

“We view it as important to publish...The idea behind CAfA is to mitigate areas of concern.”

Click here to read the full article.

More About Charron’s Practice

William Charron is a litigator who represents clients on a range of matters, including authenticity, title, copyright and contract disputes. He frequently writes and speaks on issues impacting the art world, such as provenance disputes, World War II restitution cases, artist royalty rights, and procedural law issues.

In addition to conceiving and advancing the CAfA (where he is now a board member), Charron is an advisory board member of Authentication in Art (AiA) and a founding board member of the Professional Advisors to the International Art Market (PAIAM) in New York.

Learn more about his work and experience here.