Legalart Market News

Russian billionaire's art fraud lawsuit against Sotheby's dismissed

Russian billionaire Dmitry Rybolovlev loses his case against Sotheby’s, alleging the auction house helped a Swiss art dealer cheat him out of over $160 million by imposing huge markups on artworks. The jury's decision is seen as a vindication for Sotheby’s, which maintained it knew nothing of any misconduct. Rybolovlev's lawyer called for reforms in the art market, emphasizing the lack of transparency. The case centered on allegations of fraud involving several artworks, including da Vinci’s “Salvator Mundi,” which Rybolovlev sold for a historic $450 million in 2017.