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G&M Realty L.P., et al. v. Maria Castillo, et al.

Paid petition · United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, No. 18-498-cv, 18-538-cv · judgment February 20, 2020

Certiorari denied · October 5, 2020
Pre-decision estimate: 25% cert probability (95% interval 18%–33%)

Before the decision, about 6.1× the 4.1% base rate. The model weighted this up for counsel who has won certiorari before, a Second Circuit decision below, and a circuit split argued in the petition.

Question presented

Designed to create for visual artists a “moral right” of “integrity,” the Visual Artists Rights Act of 1990 (“VARA”) authorizes courts to impose statutory damages of up to $150,000 against the owner of a work of visual art if the owner intentionally destroys a work of “recognized stature”—a novel term, undefined in VARA, which fails to provide a person of ordinary intelligence fair notice of what is prohibited. Did the Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment permit the district court to impose liability against a property owner under the “recognized stature” provision of VARA, and award enhanced statutory damages of $6.75 million, for destroying works of graffiti art affixed to his warehouses being demolished in connection with development of his property?

Counsel of record

For petitioner
Scott E. Gant
Boies Schiller Flexner LLP

For respondent
Andrew Rozynski
Eisenberg & Baum, LLP

Case

Conference history
Distributed for 1 conference

Proceedings

  1. Oct 05 2020
    Petition DENIED.
  2. Aug 19 2020
    DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 9/29/2020.
  3. Aug 07 2020
    Waiver of right of respondent Maria Castillo, et al. to respond filed.
  4. Jul 20 2020
    Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due August 24, 2020)