Case Gallery

In recent years, our law firm THEMIS has been involved in several significant legal proceedings and decisions, some of which have received worldwide media attention and have also been published in legal literature. Here we present you with an excerpt of some of these cases. known references and cases in which Dr Hannes Hartung was and is mostly involved as a lawyer:

Cultural Property Protection: Christian Levett

Representation of the well-known English collector Christian Levett for Ibero-Celtic helmets stolen from Spain.

Street Art Mural in Munich

Representation of an owner regarding permission under monument protection law for a mural by Shepard Fairey in Munich

Representation of a major bank (since 2017)

Advising and representing a major bank in mediation proceedings concerning an important work of art worth over EUR 50 million.

Important BGH ruling on Ersitzung (2019)

Obtaining an important judgement of the Federal Supreme Court on questions of the seizure of stolen works of art by Hans Purrmann together with RA am BGH Dr. von Plehwe

Advice and representation in an inheritance dispute (since 2020)

Advising and representing heirs of a famous German artist in an inheritance dispute

Cornelius Gurlitt Collection (2014)

Lifting of the confiscation of the "Schwabing Art Fund
Procedural agreement with the federal government and the Free State of Bavaria
Talking with claimants for fair and equitable solutions
Safeguarding the property and personal rights of Cornelius Gurlit

Art Crime: Representation of injured parties (since 2018)

Representation of injured parties of a German art agent in Germany regarding artworks by Yayoi Kusama and Andy Warhol

Stumbling Stones for Munich (since 2015)

Representing the applicants Peter Jordan, Tom Nowotny & Christof Eberstadt
for Stolpersteine in Munich (pro bono)

Restitution: Houdon bust (2015) and a Zaleski painting for the Republic of Poland (2019)

Successful restitution of looted art: A bust of Diana by Antoine Houdon
and a painting by Marcin Zaleski for the Republic of Poland

Most expensive carpet (2014)

Legal representation in Augsburg on the question of the liability of art experts and auction houses after false attribution

East Side Gallery (2011)

Representation of artists of the East Side Gallery on copyright issues of destruction of works and unauthorised copying

Paul Klee: Marsh Laying (2017)

Successful representation of the City of Munich
Comparison for the preservation of the swamp legend ("degenerate art")
at the Lenbachhaus

Joseph Beuys Estate (2017)

First major trial in NRW under the new KGSG
Preventing the entry of the "Project Westmensch" sketchbooks
to the list of national cultural property & enabling export