Précis
At issue in this case was whether an auction house could be liable forfraud following a buyer’s post-sale discovery that a painting purchased at auction was not authentic. The court found that because the auction house, Christie’s, New York, genuinely believed that the painting was authentic, Christie’s did not possess the necessary level of scienter (i.e., guilty knowledge) for a valid claim of
fraud
The intentional use of deceit, a trick or some dishonest means to deprive another of his money, property or legal right, either as a cause of action or as a fatal element in the action itself.
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