Justice Shirley Kornreich
Defendant Christie’s sold at auction a painting as an original Jean-Michel Basquiat. Plaintiff gallery bought the painting and sold it to plaintiff individual who sought authenticity and was informed that it was counterfeit. Plaintiff sued Christie’s for fraud and fraudulent inducement alleging Christie’s knew or was reckless in misrepresenting that the painting was authentic. The court found that Christie’s presented proof that it had no knowledge the painting was not authentic at the time of the auction and that it had no intent to defraud. Christie’s practice was to obtain the relevant information about the work from the consignor and then verify it through outside sources, such as library research, review catalogues, review books on the artist, and to seek out the authorities on the artist. The court found there was no evidence that Christie’s strayed from this practice. The court also noted the painting was put on display to the public and art enthusiasts for almost a week, and there was no record of any concerns raised about its authenticity. Finding that plaintiff had not adequately raised an issue of fact on knowledge and intent, the court granted Christie’s motion and the complaint was dismissed.
