Situation
An art repatriation firm was in a long legal battle over an artwork by a renowned painter that had been looted by the Nazis during World War II. It was seeking recovery of that painting from one of the world’s largest private art dealers who had wrongfully purchased it at auction.
The cyber-hack and leaking of documents from the law firm Mossack Fonseca, more commonly known as the Panama Papers scandal, impacted global political leaders, corporations, celebrities, wealthy investors and family office investors worldwide. The Panama Papers contained key information in helping our client recover the artwork and return it to its rightful owner.
Solution
In our work to raise the profile of our client’s case, our first aim was to help the news media understand the complex story of how the art ended up in the hands of the private dealer and why he was legally required to return it to the descendant of its original owner.
Second, we needed to coordinate art litigation coverage in multiple media markets throughout the world in a fast-moving news cycle.
Our detailed, cross-border communications and media relations strategy and plan that made the narrative clear and compelling and supported our client’s legal arguments.
Results
We selectively targeted key national publications and top specialized outlets in the U.S., Canada, and Europe. The client received wholly positive coverage in more than 50 top publications throughout the world including The Economist, Le Monde, The Guardian, Suddeutsche Zeitung, and The Wall Street Journal.
We were a finalist in the 2017 PRNews Platinum Awards for our work on this matter.