Christie’s, Sotheby’s Accused of Cheating Artists on Royalties
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Christie’s Inc. and Sotheby’s were accused in a lawsuit of failing to pay artists royalties for works either sold in California or at auction by California sellers.
The Sam Francis Foundation, the estate of Robert Graham, and artists Chuck Close and Laddie John Dill said in complaints filed yesterday in Los Angeles federal court that the auctioneers violated California’s Resale Royalties Act by failing to pay them 5 percent of the sales price for their works.