Art forgery, nullity claim, error, fraud, Civil Code, contract law, vice of consent, substantial quality
Reader
Abstract
Extract
of 3
Abstract
A buyer purchases a painting believed to be a Monet, but it is later discovered to be a forgery. The buyer can claim nullity based on error or fraud.
Extract
[...] It will be necessary for the person who invokes it before the judge to prove it. Fraud, on the other hand, is in accordance with Article 1137 of the Civil Code \"the fact for one of the contracting parties In accordance with Article 1139 of the Civil Code \"The error resulting from a fraud In order for fraud to be taken into account, there must be a material element, and an intentional element. The error caused by the fraud must have been determinative of the consent. [...]
[...] Secondly, the error caused by the fraud can be taken into account. In this case, it will be necessary to prove the fraudulent reticence. The buyer must prove that the seller had knowledge that it was a forgery and that he would have concealed the information, all the more so since, according to the expert's statements, a young art dealer could have noticed the forgery. Thus, it is possible to advise the buyer that if she does not want to question her friend, she can base her nullity claim on the error and not the fraud associated with the error by proving that due to her job as a banker, she would not have been able to detect the error. [...]
[...] Later, the buyer discovered by an expert that the purchased work is not an original but a high-quality copy, and that even the youngest art dealer could not be mistaken. II. Problematic situation What legal action can a buyer take who acquired a work presented by the seller as a masterpiece painting but which turns out to be a forgery? III. Rules of law Consent is the expression of the will to contract. It must be free and informed. The vice of consent, which error and fraud are dealt with in Articles 1130 and following of the Civil Code. [...]
