After an arduous legal battle spanning nearly two decades, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals issued a unanimous ruling on Tuesday, permitting a Spanish museum to maintain possession of a painting that had been looted from the German Jewish family of a former La Mesa resident. The case, initiated in 2005 by Claude Cassirer, aimed to reclaim Camille Pissarro’s 1897 masterpiece, “Rue Saint-Honoré, Après-midi, Effet de Pluie,” valued at over $30 million. The painting currently resides in Madrid’s Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum, acquired by Spain in 1993 alongside around 800 other artworks from Baron Hans Heinrich Thyssen-Bornemisza.
The painting’s poignant history is deeply intertwined with the tragic events of World War II. Originally in the possession of Cassirer’s family for over four decades, it was forcibly sold in 1939 under the duress of the Nazi regime. Lilly Neubauer, Cassirer’s grandmother, had to part with the painting for a mere $360, a mandatory condition imposed by the Nazis for her and her husband to secure visas to escape the Holocaust and flee to England.
While the acknowledgment that the Nazis stole the painting from Lilly Neubauer is undisputed, the recent legal dispute did not hinge on this admission. Instead, the central question was whether Spanish law or California law should govern the ownership of the painting. The unanimous decision favored the application of Spanish law, affirming a previous ruling by a federal judge in Los Angeles.
However, amid the legal consensus, Judge Consuelo Callahan expressed moral reservations in a concurring opinion. She stated, “Sometimes our oaths of office and an appreciation of our proper roles as appellate judges require that we concur in a result at odds with our moral compass. For me, this is such a situation.” Callahan went on to note that while not legally obligated, Spain should have voluntarily relinquished the painting in line with international agreements regarding the return of Nazi-confiscated art.
The legal saga commenced in 2005 when Claude Cassirer filed the lawsuit, seeking the return of the Pissarro painting. Unfortunately, Cassirer passed away in 2010, but his family continued the legal battle. The United Jewish Federation of San Diego County joined the case, emphasizing the significance of addressing Nazi-looted artworks and their rightful owners.
In court proceedings over the years, the Cassirer family argued that the museum should have been aware of, or taken further steps to learn about, the tainted history of the Pissarro painting. They contended that, under California law, which disallows title to stolen goods, the painting should be returned to them. Conversely, the museum maintained that it acquired the painting in good faith and had no actual knowledge of the looting. It argued that federal law applied, making Spanish regulations govern ownership.
In 2019, a U.S. District Court judge in Los Angeles sided with the museum but criticized it for failing its “moral commitments” regarding international agreements on looted artwork. A year later, the same three-judge panel from the 9th Circuit rejected an appeal by the family. The judges ruled that federal law applied, creating a conflict with other circuits and prompting the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene.
In 2022, the Supreme Court ruled unanimously that state law should apply, overriding the 9th Circuit’s decision. The case returned to the 9th Circuit, which certified a crucial question to the California Supreme Court. However, in August, the state Supreme Court declined to hear the question, leaving the decision once again to the 9th Circuit.
The recent ruling involved a three-step analysis by the three-judge panel. They had to determine whether the laws in California and Spain were the same or different, whether the application of both laws created a “true conflict,” and finally, which jurisdiction would be more harmed if the other’s law was applied. The judges concluded that applying California law would significantly impair Spain’s interests, while applying Spanish law would relatively minimally impair California’s interests.
The case underscores the intricate nature of resolving ownership disputes involving art looted during wartime and the challenges of reconciling legal considerations with moral concerns. The Cassirer family’s attorneys have indicated their intention to seek en banc review, expressing disagreement with the decision and its potential implications for the restitution of Nazi-looted art worldwide.
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La Mesa heirs of Nazi-looted Pissarro painting lose legal battle to Spanish museum