Statutory Bars and Stolen Art: Legal Obstacles to Recovering Nazi Looted Works

This program offers an overview of the legal frameworks and procedural challenges involved in claims to recover artworks displaced during the Nazi era. Drawing from key U.S. and international cases, Raymond J. Dowd examines the role of statutes of limitations, sovereign immunity, and property law doctrines in shaping the outcomes of restitution efforts. The presentation also reviews recent legislative developments, including the Holocaust Expropriated Art Recovery (HEAR) Act and disclosure requirements under New York law, within the broader historical and legal context of cultural property protections.