Two Nazi loot claims may test California statute intended to remove roadblocks to restitution
Lawsuits related to a Cranach diptych at the Norton Simon Museum of Art and a group of watercolours at the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum were filed two days before a 2024 California statute expired
Two lawsuits were filed in California courts on September 14th, timed to the deadline for claiming Nazi-looted art. The lawsuits target the Norton Simon Museum of Art and the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum, both in Poland, and use a now-expired California statute that permitted lawsuits for art lost due to political persecution.
The cases may face procedural challenges as museums may argue the statute is invalid or invoke foreign sovereign immunity. The federal claim in Los Angeles District Court is brought by the heirs of Dina Gottliebova Babbitt, a Czech Jew who painted portraits under Mengele's orders while imprisoned at Auschwitz. The museum claims the portraits are evidence of Mengele’s racial research on Roma and Sinti, but the plaintiffs argue they are works created under duress.
In the state lawsuit, plaintiffs demand return of Cranach's "Adam and Eve" along with restitution and damages, citing the 2024 California law that permits new claims even if previously dismissed.
Written by urgent.news from The Art Newspaper's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
