Sotheby’s have said they will “vigorously challenge” any attempt by Russian billionaire Dmitry Rybolovlev to bring a claim against it in the UK....MORE
Rybolovlev, the potash magnate and owner of AS Monaco football club, is involved in an intense legal battle after claiming he was systematically overcharged on a series of multi-million pound artworks by Swiss dealer and ‘freeport’ businessman Yves Bouvier. Bouvier has strenuously denied the allegations.
Around a third of the paintings, including Leonardo’s Salvator Mundi that later sold for $450m at Christie’s New York in November last year, were acquired by Bouvier via private sales brokered by Sotheby’s. Rybolovlev has previously threatened to sue Sotheby’s and the company’s vice chairman of private sales Samuel Valette after alleging that they were complicit in Bouvier overcharging him for the works.
After lodging claims in France, Monaco and Singapore, Rybolovlev’s lawyers recently secured a ruling in New York for the release of confidential documents that could now be used in British courts.
A spokesman for Rybolovlev said: "We are not arguing about the price of the paintings bought with the assistance of Bouvier. We are arguing about the method of deception he used to add margins that were fraudulent and completely hidden from his client. The process will show how he did this and who he worked with to do it."...
Previously:
February 2017
"Big Money: What Geneva’s Art King Lost in Battle with Russian Billionaire":
November 2016
Big Money: "What Did Sotheby’s Know And When Did They Know It"
Dirty deeds, not dirt cheap.July 2016
It's pretty well established that the punishment for an agent's breach of the duty of loyalty to his principal is death.
At least in Russia at any rate
Big Money: "An Auction House Learns the Art of Shadow Banking"
Nov. 2015
Art (and money laundering): Swiss Government's Tough New Controls On Freeports Effective January 1
Nov. 2015
Art: War Between the 'Freeport King' and the Oligarch and How Dmitry Rybolovlev Made a Quick $300 Million
Sept. 2015
"Oligarchs and Orchestras: Inside Luxembourg’s Secretive Low-Tax ‘Fortress of Art’ Warehouse"
June 2008
The Power of Potash: Russian Billionaire Part of Record Deal For Trump Mansion
