Withers has announced the arrival of senior counsel Frank Lord to grow its Art and Advisory practice in the US. Frank joins Withers in New York after more than five years leading his own specialized art law practice.
For more than two decades, Frank has represented collectors, art dealers, claimants, auction houses and museums on art transactions, loan agreements, insurance and intellectual property matters, and disputes related to artworks. He has handled record-setting private sales, helped place works in important institutions—including the Museum of Modern Art, the Getty Museum, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), the National Gallery in Washington, D.C., and the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam—and advised individuals and estates on the sale of hundreds of works at auction in the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands.
Mari-Claudia Jiménez, partner and head of Withers' US Art and Advisory practice, said: "I am extremely excited to have Frank join the Art and Advisory practice that we have established in the US. His experience is unparalleled. Frank is not only a lawyer, he is an Art Historian with a Ph.D. His background in Art History gives him a nuanced view of the legal issues our clients face. He speaks their language and shares their devotion to the remarkable works that are at the core of what we all do."
Frank adds: "Joining Mari-Claudia is a new partnership that continues our extraordinary personal and professional relationship stretching back to the very beginning of our legal careers. We have a shared belief in a holistic approach to advising clients that depends not only on our skill as attorneys but also on our experiences as art world professionals. I came to law as an Art Historian. Mari-Claudia has a degree in Art History, and after we were partners together in the Art Law Group at Herrick, Feinstein LLP, she joined the C-suite at Sotheby's and became an influential dealmaker. So, we are not just attorneys visiting the art world from the confines of law firms. We are art professionals who understand our clients' needs because we have spent years living and working in the art world with them. That is what makes us unique."
Mari-Claudia adds: "Frank and I are delighted to have Sarina Taylor joining the US Art and Advisory team from Milbank LLP. As a former Christie's specialist in Asian 20th Century and Contemporary Art, she shares our vision of legal advice based on real experience in the art world."