Court of Appeal, Ivory Act

As a Director of  'FACT' (FRIENDS OF ANTIQUE CULTURAL TREASURES) we decided to question the fairness of the Ivory Act passed by Parliament in 2018.

In conjunction with BADA ( THE BRITISH ANTIQUES DEALER'S ASSOCIATION) We raised money to take the Govt. to Judicial Review in the High Court, and have been granted permission to Appeal by Justice Mr Robert Jay to the Court of Appeal.

Whilst we acknowledge its laudable intention to stop poaching in Africa - which we completely support, the Act will have the detrimental side affect of rendering legitimate antiques (pre 1918) made wholly or in part of ivory virtually valueless and unsaleable unless they meet excessive and narrow exemptions.

So if you are a collector, antique dealer, decorative art lover or just someone who objects to fake news and a three line parliamentary whip banning a group of objects (like you might see in the Victoria & Albert Museum, or the Fan Museum at Greenwich) which you or your ancestors could have legally purchased, and are now rendered valueless please donate as much as you can afford to our plight for legal action and our appeal to be given a fair hearing in the Court of Appeal.

The government have been arbiters of taste, ignored the antiques trade in rushing through this unfair act without completing a thorough impact assessment on the decorative arts of our country. Collectors pension funds, have had genuine works of art devalued by this process, and have not been financially compensated by the government over this matter.

More worryingly it will consign a group of interesting and important works of art made of any organic material to be further restricted and consigned to the landfill sites of our country once the value has been stripped away from these legitimate works of art.

We are aiming to raise a further £50,000 to have our case heard in the Court of Appeal.

Thank you for considering our appeal.

Alastair Gibson, Director, FACT.

Council member of the British Antiques Dealers Association.
Member of the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors, Fine Art Division.
Former Sotheby's Asian Art Specialist, Director.
Former Director of Asian Art in London.

www.gibsonantiques.com
https://www.antiquestradegazette.com/guides/information-guides/uk-ivory-ban/
https://www.antiquestradegazette.com/news/2019/dealers-granted-leave-to-appeal-decision-in-ivory-act-judicial-review/