Congress Moves to Expand Holocaust Art Restitution Claims
The US House of Representatives approved an extension of the Holocaust Expropriated Art Recovery (HEAR) Act, a 2016 law intended to help families pursue claims for art stolen during the Holocaust, and the measure—already passed unanimously by the Senate—now goes to President Donald Trump. The original HEAR Act provided a six-year window to file a claim after identifying a looted work, but courts have sometimes dismissed cases based on the long passage of time; the new bill would further restrict time-based defenses so more disputes are decided on their merits. The legislation also addresses sovereign immunity by explicitly treating Nazi-era seizures as violations of international law, potentially enabling more lawsuits against foreign state-linked institutions in US courts. Museums and the Association of Art Museum Directors have warned that limiting defenses and weakening sovereign immunity could disrupt legal norms and international relationships, while supporters argue it is necessary to prevent institutions from using procedural barriers to retain works taken under duress.
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This story was covered in Museum Shakeups, Restitution Fights, and Sponsor Fallout